SOURCE :- SIASAT NEWS
New Delhi: The BJP on Friday, August 21, termed Rahul Gandhi’s dharna at a police station here a “camerajeevi” drama to stay in headlines and alleged that it was aimed at diverting public attention from the “embarrassment” faced by his party over its stand on the Vande Mataram issue.
The ruling party accused the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha of indulging in “politics of anarchy” and said his objective was not to seek justice or an investigation but to create a ruckus and challenge law and order.
Earlier in the day, Gandhi sat on a dharna at the Parliament Street police station, seeking registration of an FIR over pellet injuries suffered by a youth during the CJP-led July 20 protest. The protest ended more than six hours later after police registered the complaint.
‘Cheap and diversionary politics,’ says Nadda
Talking to reporters, Union Minister J P Nadda said, “Today, the entire country once again witnessed Rahul Gandhi’s cheap and diversionary politics on full display outside the Parliament Street Police Station.”
Gandhi’s protest was neither for students nor for justice, Nadda charged.
“It was a symbol of the Congress party’s political desperation and Gandhi’s insatiable hunger for footage,” the senior BJP leader said.
Questioning Gandhi’s motive behind holding the dharna, Nadda said the Supreme Court has already taken cognisance of the incident during the July 20 protests and constituted a five-member high-powered committee headed by a former judge to examine the allegations of police excesses against student demonstrators.
“When the country’s highest court is investigating the matter, what does Rahul Gandhi seek to prove by sitting outside a police station in front of the cameras? Has the Leader of Opposition lost faith in the country’s judiciary?” he asked.
“The truth is that Rahul Gandhi is staging this ‘camerajeevi’ drama simply to remain in the headlines,” the former BJP president said.
“This reflects his stubbornness and the frustration of the Congress,” Nadda said, alleging that Gandhi’s objective was not to seek justice or an investigation but to create a ruckus and challenge law and order.
‘Diverting attention from Vande Mataram row’
Linking Gandhi’s protest to the ongoing political row over Vande Mataram, Nadda alleged that the Congress was facing criticism over its stand on the national song and Gandhi had staged the sit-in to divert attention from the issue.
“Today, the Congress stands surrounded from all sides across the country over the issue of Vande Mataram. The people are demanding answers from the Congress for insulting the national song,” the former BJP president said.
“A senior Congress leader was seen cutting a tricolour-themed cake. To conceal this anti-national face and divert attention from its massive embarrassment, Rahul Gandhi hastily orchestrated this diversionary drama,” he added.
Nadda said the country is governed by the Constitution, law and judicial procedures, and not by “one family’s stubbornness” or “love for cameras”.
“Rahul Gandhi must understand that the people have thoroughly recognised his hit-and-run approach and political hypocrisy.
“No matter how much drama he stages, the Congress cannot escape its sins and accountability. The people are demanding answers from the Congress and the Congress will have to answer,” the BJP leader said.
Nadda alleged that the Congress had run away from a debate on the students’ issue during the Monsoon session of Parliament despite Union Home Minister Amit Shah calling upon the opposition party to participate in it.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi stated long ago that the Congress is a parasitic party. Whichever party associates itself with the Congress is eventually consumed by it. Now, the Congress is hell-bent on destroying the future of children and students as well,” he said.
‘Politics of anarchy,’ says Prasad
Senior BJP leader and MP Ravi Shankar Prasad accused Gandhi of indulging in “politics of anarchy” and alleged that he had no respect for law and order.
Addressing a press conference here, Prasad too claimed that Gandhi’s protest was an attempt to divert attention after the Congress realised that its stand on the Vande Mataram issue was wrong.
“I have my doubts and allegations that the Congress is trapped over its stand on Vande Mataram and is trying to divert attention,” he told reporters.
Prasad said Gandhi staged the dharna without permission or prior information and questioned the Congress’ decision to protest when an investigation into the matter was already underway.
“The Congress has become a party driven by Rahul Gandhi’s appeasement politics,” Prasad alleged.
Gandhi ended his dharna after an FIR was registered on a complaint by the mother of 19-year-old Sahil Lochab, who had suffered pellet injuries during the protest, and said this is the first step towards justice.
SOURCE : SIASAT
