Police have registered a case against 17 AAP leaders, including Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh, for violating Covid protocols during the party’s Tiranga Yatra here.
Reacting to the development, Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia said that the mindset of the BJP is still like that of the British.
The BJP Government ensures an FIR is filed for taking out the ‘Tiranga Yatra’ that too in the 75th year of Independence. “The British have gone but the mindset of the BJP is still a slave to them. The BJP can hold Ashirwad Yatra, Bengal elections and gatherings in Banaras but the ‘Tiranga Yatra’ is a crime. No matter how many FIRs are filed against us but the ‘Tiranga Yatra’ will run,” he tweeted in Hindi.
AAP senior leader and Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh tweeted: “This fight is “Tricolour flag” vs “lotus flag”. Was there an FIR against these BJP leaders? It is clear that the BJP leaders are afraid of the pride of the Tricolour and are playing FIR-FIR. File a lot of FIRs Yogi ji, the Tricolour-yatra will go out in every village of UP.”
Permission had been granted to organise the Tiranga Yatra while following Covid-19 protocols with a limit of 50 people, they said.
But the number of people, who attended the march on Sunday, exceeded the permitted number and Covid-19 protocols were not followed, police said.
Ahead of the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls, the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) plans to take out Tiranga Yatras in Ayodhya, Lucknow and Noida to mark the 75th year of India’s Independence.
The AAP party will carry out this yatra in Ayodhya on September 14 and later in 403 Assembly segments of Uttar Pradesh, Sisodia had said on Sunday, as he attacked the BJP Government in the State over the poor law-and-order, education, healthcare and employment situations.
Superintendent of Police (City) Vikas Kumar said that the case has been registered against 17 AAP leaders, including Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and Rajya Sabha MP, and another 500 unidentified people.
They were part of the Tiranga Yatra carried out by the party’s leaders on Sunday evening from GIC ground till the Shaheed Smarak in Sanjay Place in Agra, he said.
“For not following the Covid-19 protocol the FIR was registered at the Lohamandi Police Station on Monday morning,” the SP said.
They have been booked under Indian Penal Code Sections 188, 269 and 270, and under provisions the Epidemic Diseases Act for violation of Covid-19 protocols, police said.
Section 188 pertains to disobedience to order duly promulgated by a public servant, while Section 269 and 270 pertain to whoever unlawfully, malignantly or negligently does any act which is, and which he knows or has reason to believe to be, likely to spread the infection of any disease dangerous to life.
