Opposition march in Parliament over police action on students
Opposition MPs took out a protest march in Parliament House complex on Wednesday, demanding Home Minister Amit Shah’s statement on alleged police excesses against students, discussion on “misappropriation” of Ram temple donations and statehood for Jammu and Kashmir.
Carrying placards and raising slogans against the Government, the Opposition MPs, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, marched from the statue of Mahatma Gandhi at Prerna Sthal to Makar Dwar.
Kharge demanded accountability from the Government. Taking a swipe at Shah, Kharge asked why he hasn’t been coming to the House.
“They are disrespecting Parliament. It has been so many days but they don’t want to step inside the House. What is the issue in coming to the House and giving a statement?” Kharge told reporters.
Later, in a post on social media, Kharge said, “INDIA demands answers - Why is the Home Minister shying away from making a statement in the Parliament on the atrocities perpetrated against our youth? Isn’t the PM responsible for ‘chanda-chadhawa chori’ in Shree Ram Mandir.”
Gandhi also slammed Shah and sought answers over the alleged police brutality against students during the July 20 protest over the paper leak issue. “Amit Shah ji, do not hide; answer the nation’s question in Parliament - who ordered the attack on the students?” Gandhi said in his Facebook post.
The MPs carried placards slamming the Government and demanded a statement by Shah in both Houses of Parliament on the alleged “atrocities” committed by police and other forces on students during protests over the paper leak issue last month.
Several MPs also raised the issue of “misappropriation” of donations at the Ram temple in Ayodhya. Many MPs, including those from Jammu and Kashmir, carried placards, demanding statehood for Jammu and Kashmir. Wednesday marks the seventh anniversary of the abrogation of Article 370 and J-K being turned into a Union Territory.
The MPs raised slogans such as ‘chhanda chor, gaddi chor’, ‘Amit Shah jawaab do’ and ‘chanda chor kahan milenge, BJP ke daftar mein’.
The MPs also kept donation boxes in front of Makar Dwar steps to symbolise the alleged theft of donations at the Ram temple and lined up around them to raise slogans against the Government. Some MPs also put cash in the box to symbolise the donations made and “theft” that took place later.
Besides Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, SP’s Dimple Yadav and Dharmendra Yadav, TMC’s Sagarika Ghose and Mahua Moitra, NCP (SP) Supriya Sule, JMM’s Mahua Maji, RSP’s NK Premchandran, among others, participated in the protest.
While marching, the protesting MPs lined up behind a big banner that read ‘Amit Shah jawaab do’.
Priyanka Gandhi also lashed out at the Government and sought accountability over the alleged police excesses against students.
“Those holding high offices have a responsibility towards the people. It is not a dictatorship or a ‘raj darbar’. So if something has happened, pellet guns have been fired on students, they have been tear-gassed and lathicharged, somebody would have ordered it. They should take responsibility; that has been the tradition of the country,” Priyanka Gandhi said.
The INDIA bloc has vowed to corner the Government on issues of alleged theft of donations at the Ram temple and the use of “brutal force” against students during their protests last week.
