New Delhi, Aug 31
The Congress on Monday hit out at the BJP after an FIR was registered against Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi over his recent remarks on a ‘shuddhikaran’ (purification) ceremony held at a venue in Uttarakhand’s Haldwani, where party president Mallikarjun Kharge had addressed a rally, saying that Congress workers across the country will take to the streets this evening demanding prosecution of BJP leaders involved in the incident.
K.C. Venugopal took to social media 'X' and said, "The day after LOP RahulGandhi ji’s bold Press Conference demanding that BJP workers be prosecuted for the 'purification’ done after Kharge ji's rally, the Uttarakhand Police has filed an FIR against Rahul ji himself! This is nothing but the pot calling the kettle black."
He alleged that the BJP had defended what he described as “abhorrently casteist behaviour” and accused the party of promoting social injustice.
"What is worse, the BJP has actually jumped in to defend this abhorrently casteist behaviour - showing to the entire world that they are the biggest perpetrators of social injustice today. They are willing to put the entire might of the state to attack those who speak against Dalit atrocities," he said.
He further said Congress would oppose what it termed an attack on constitutional values.
"What the BJP has done is to attack the values of social justice enshrined in the Constitution, and the Congress will fight against this attack tooth and nail. We will not rest until the true culprits of the insult to Kharge ji are punished, and this frivolous FIR against Rahul ji is thrown in the dustbin," he said in the post.
Venugopal also announced that Congress workers would hold protests across the country.
"This evening, Congress workers across the country will be on the streets demanding prosecution of the BJP leaders who insulted Kharge ji and to defend our Constitution against the BJP's assault on its values of social justice," he said in the post.
An FIR has been registered against Rahul Gandhi, following a complaint by a member of the Valmiki community in Haldwani alleging that the Congress leader gave a casteist spin to a religious ritual held at the venue of the AICC chief's programme, police said on Sunday.
The FIR was registered under various provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) relating to the promotion of enmity between groups and deliberate acts intended to outrage religious feelings. Provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, have also been invoked, police said.
Amit Kumar, a resident of Jawahar Nagar and a member of the Shri Ram Sena Dharmarth Seva Nyas, alleged in his complaint filed at the Haldwani police station that he was present during the “ritual and cleanliness drive”. He claimed that Gandhi’s remarks at a press conference in Delhi on August 29 hurt the sentiments of the community.
Kumar accused Gandhi of portraying those associated with the ritual as practising “untouchability” and being “anti-Dalit”.
In his complaint, Kumar claimed that he belonged to the Scheduled Caste community and that people from different sections of society, including members of Scheduled Castes, participated in the ritual. He said the ceremony had “no connection” with Kharge’s caste.
The political controversy erupted after some individuals allegedly performed a ‘purification yajna’ at the Ramlila Ground in Haldwani on August 11, three days after Kharge addressed a public meeting at the venue on August 8.
The Congress party has described the incident as a reflection of what it termed the BJP’s anti-Dalit mindset.
The BJP, however, defended the action, claiming that the venue was left littered after Kharge’s rally and that slogans were raised there which were inappropriate for a religious site.
