Former Congress President Rahul Gandhi, his sister and General Secretary of the party in charge of Uttar Pradesh Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other leaders were detained by the police as they headed to Hathras to meet the family of the 19-year-old Dalit girl, who died. in a Delhi hospital on Tuesday, a fortnight after she was allegedly gang-raped in her village.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) called the Gandhi brothers’ proposed visit to Hathras “political tourism.” Union Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said criminals will be punished for their barbarism. “The survey teams are conducting the investigation, but I think there should be no political tourism in them,” he said.
The Gandhis and other Congressional leaders were first detained in Greater Noida on the Yamuna Highway and then detained when they began to walk towards Hathras, about 145 km from Greater Noida.
The Gandhis were taken away in a police jeep and kept in a guest house for some time before being released and escorted back to Delhi by UP police. Congress had claimed that Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi were arrested by the police and attacked the state’s chief minister, Yogi Adityanath, for the move.
“Shri Rahul Gandhi, Smt Priyanka Gandhi and senior congressional leaders have been arrested by UP police,” the party said on Twitter.
Videos and images shared by Congress showed Rahul Gandhi falling into the fray that ensued when police tried to prevent Congressional leaders and supporters from marching towards Hathras, near the Jewar toll plaza.
The girl was cremated in the early hours of Wednesday, and her family alleged that local police forced them to perform the last rites in the dead of night.
Priyanka Gandhi also alleged that the police used “lathis” on congressional workers and many of them were injured with the baton.
Earlier, Rahul Gandhi was seen asking UP police under what law they were detaining him and insisting that he would like to move only to Hathras to reunite with the family of the rape victim, as Section 144 was imposed. Under it section, the gathering of four or more people is prohibited.
“Can you tell me under what law you can prevent me from marching on Hathras? I want to go to Hathras alone and on what basis can you arrest me? he asked, to which the police replied that he had violated Section 188 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for disobeying orders promulgated by the government during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Rahul Gandhi also claimed that in today’s India only RSS people and Prime Minister Narendra Modi can move. “In India today, only Modi can walk or travel by plane. Nobody else can, ”he said.
The congressional leader also tweeted: “In times of pain, loved ones are not left alone. It’s Jungle Raj in UP that meeting a grieving family scares the government too. Don’t be so afraid of the prime minister. “
Priyanka Gandhi said they were repeatedly prevented from going to Hathras. “When we all started our walking march with Rahul ji, we were repeatedly stopped and it rained down on us in a barbaric way. Many workers were injured. But our intention is clear, “he claimed.
“The sticks of a selfish government cannot stop us. I wish these lathis were used by these police while defending the Dalit daughter of Hathras, ”he also tweeted in Hindi.
“An arrogant power is demonstrating its power over the corpses of innocent girls and indulging in injustice, rather than preventing it. Our fight for women will continue for a safe society and state, where they can live freely and progress, ”Priyanka Gandhi said in another tweet.
Congressional Chief Spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala also posted a video with a tweet showing Rahul Gandhi allegedly being mistreated.
“Lala Lajpat Rai had said that every blow of a stick to my body would turn out to be the last nail in the coffin of the British Raj. The sticks in the convoy of Rahul ji and Priyanka ji will also prove to be the last nail in the coffin of the Yogi government, ”he tweeted in Hindi.
The union’s former finance minister, P Chidambaram, also alleged that none of the country’s laws appeared to apply to the UP police.
“UP police is a law unto itself. None of the laws of the country seem to apply to him. What if the leaders of a political party protest against a heinous crime and wish to visit the victim’s family? he asked on Twitter.
Congress has demanded Adityanath’s resignation over the gruesome incident that it said was a “stain” on society. The head of Congress, Sonia Gandhi, said that the ‘Nirbhaya of Hathras’ did not die but was assassinated by a “cruel and callous” government and its administration.
In a video message, he said that the country will speak out against this injustice and will not allow the BJP to divide the country and violate the Constitution.
Before leaving for Hathras, Rahul Gandhi attacked the government of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the “raj jungle” in Uttar Pradesh. “The atrocities against the daughters continue in the jungle raj of UP. They were not given respect when they were alive and now their dignity has been taken away even in death. The BJP motto of ‘Beti Bachao’ is not to save the girls, but to hide the facts and save energy, ”she tweeted.
Priyanka Gandhi also attacked Adityanath for increasing rape incidents at UP. “A gruesome incident similar to Hathras has occurred in Balrampur. The girl’s feet and back were broken. There have been atrocities against girls in Azamgarh, Baghpat and Bulandshahr. There is no limit to the jungle raj of UP. Law and order cannot be implemented through marketing and speeches. This is the time of the Prime Minister’s accountability. People want answers, ”he tweeted in Hindi.
But the BJP accused Congress of politicizing the issue and said the Uttar Pradesh government would do justice to the incident.
Without naming the Gandhis, Naqvi said: “Those who are trying to increase tension through political tourism should not do that. Everyone is saddened and wants punishment for the guilty. The Uttar Pradesh government is working to achieve this. You will see the results soon. “
In UP, Cabinet Minister Siddharth Nath Singh lashed out at congressional leaders and accused them of politicizing the incident. He said congressional leaders must answer why they have not visited Rajasthan, where a similar rape incident was reported.
Singh said that Hathras’ gang rape will be heard in fast-track court and the UP prime minister has already stated that a special investigation team (SIT) will investigate the matter. “It will be released in a week,” he said, adding that the state government has announced an ex-gratia of 2.50,000 rupees, a house and a job for the victim’s family.
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