CJP protest in Delhi: LoP targets Shah, sets CEC ‘public impeachment | Political Pulse News
Targeting the BJP-led government and the Election Commission (EC), Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi said Friday that the INDIA bloc’s protest programmes over the weekend were against the “demolition of Indian democracy by Mr Narendra Modi, by Mr Amit Shah and by Mr Gyanesh Kumar and his crew in the Election Commission”.
Gandhi said there was “huge anger, huge emotional pain” among people and accused Union Home Minister Amit Shah of attempting to stop people from attending the Opposition’s Ramlila Maidan rally on Sunday. The BJP dismissed the allegation and asked the LoP to show proof.
The Opposition parties will organise a “public impeachment” of Kumar, the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), on Saturday afternoon. It was initially supposed to be held on Friday, but was postponed because of rains in the national Capital, Gandhi said. On Sunday afternoon, Opposition leaders will march from the Minto-Road Connaught Place to Ramlila Maidan.
Addressing reporters at Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s 10, Rajaji Marg residence, the LoP accused Shah of attempting to stop people from attending the rally. The Congress and other Opposition parties are mobilising workers from as far away as Bihar and Telangana for the event.
“Of course, the Home Minister is trying his best to stop people from coming into Delhi; trying to ensure that our party members, thousands of people, common people who want to come from UP, from Bihar, from Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Haryana … all these states, Telangana, Punjab are being stopped. And they are trying their best,” Gandhi said.
Gandhi told the government to “watch what happens at Ramlila ground” and said whoever wants to protest was welcome to join the march and rally on Sunday.
“You watch how many people come, and watch how many people they manage to stop, and you will understand what is going on in this country. Huge anger, huge emotional pain, because millions of people are being disenfranchised, their vote is being stolen from them to help Mr Adani (industrialist Gautam Adani), Mr Ambani (industrialist Mukesh Ambani), Mr Modi, Mr Shah, and Mr Bhagwat (RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat),” said the LoP.
“There are no multiple protests; this is one protest; the entire Opposition is standing here. Anybody who wants to protest, any person is welcome to come here. We are all standing together because we are defending the Constitution, we are defending the idea of India; we are defending the vote, which is the expression of all Indians,” he said.
For the past few days, senior Congress leaders, including Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and K C Venugopal, have been meeting state leaders to ensure maximum mobilisation of Congress workers for the rally. MPs and leaders from states near Delhi have been handed big targets. “There is healthy competition among the Congress units in states neighbouring Delhi, like Haryana and Uttar Pradesh,” said an MP.
Dismissing the LoP’s allegations, the BJP asked him to furnish proof. “Who has been stopped? Who stopped whom and where? Show proof,” said BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra.
Apart from Gandhi, Kharge, and other senior Congress leaders, Opposition MPs from different INDIA bloc parties were present at the press briefing. Among them were Mamata All India Trinamool Congress’s Derek O’Brien, Samajwadi Party leader Dharmendra Yadav, John Brittas of the CPI(M), CPI’s P Sandosh Kumar, Shiv Sena (UBT)’s Arvind Sawant, Sanjay Yadav of the Rashtriya Janata Dal, and Revolutionary Socialist Party leader N K Premachandran.
“From EVMs to voter lists, everything is manipulated. Through the results of the UP MLC elections, teachers and graduates have made it clear how far behind the BJP is in UP,” Yadav said.
“Civil society, students, youth, workers, housewives, we are all in this together,” said O’Brien.
‘Public impeachment’ of CEC
Gandhi, meanwhile, said the Opposition had, by consensus, decided to push back the CEC’s “public impeachment” to Saturday afternoon.
“By consensus, we have decided to postpone today’s programme to tomorrow at the same time because of rain. We felt that it would be uncomfortable for seniors to sit in the rain, and we will do this same programme tomorrow.”
Congress sources said elaborate arrangements had been made at Kharge’s residence for the programme. There are provisions for a multi-camera shoot and a press gallery has been set up.
Former Speaker Meira Kumar will preside over the session, while Kharge will introduce the motion. All INDIA bloc parties have been allocated speakers as per their parliamentary strength. The speakers have been advised to make their speeches “political” and not make too many legal points. In the end, Gandhi will sum up the motion.
