KNews Desk: The controversy regarding the alleged purification yagya at Ramlila Maidan in Haldwani, Uttarakhand has now taken legal form. An FIR has been lodged in this case against Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi. The complaint has been lodged by 26 year old Amit Kumar, resident of Jawahar Nagar. Amit comes from Valmiki community and is said to be associated with Shri Ram Sena Charitable Service Trust.
According to Haldwani Police, on the complaint of Amit Kumar, a case has been registered in the Kotwali police station, making Rahul Gandhi an accused. In the complaint, the comment made by Rahul Gandhi in the press conference on August 29 regarding the alleged purification program held at Ramlila Maidan in Haldwani has been cited.
What accusation was made against Rahul Gandhi?
Amit Kumar alleged in his complaint that Rahul Gandhi gave a caste color to the issue of purification and tried to portray the people participating in the program as untouchable and anti-Dalit. The complainant says that Rahul Gandhi's remarks hurt the sentiments of the Valmiki community and created a situation of tension in the society. According to Amit, he himself was present during the cleaning and religious rituals at Ramlila Maidan on August 11. He claims that people from different classes participated in the program and it had nothing to do with the caste of any person.
A public meeting was held in Kharge on 8th August.
This entire controversy started on August 8 after the public meeting of Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge at Ramlila Maidan in Haldwani. Amit Kumar alleges that after the program was over, there was a lot of garbage and empty liquor bottles lying in the ground. They also claimed some bottles allegedly contained impure ingredients. After this, on August 11, the Ramlila grounds were cleaned and a havan-purification program was organized to restore religious and cultural decorum. Amit says that he was also involved in the cleaning campaign.
Rahul Gandhi had called purification as untouchability
According to Amit Kumar's complaint, Rahul Gandhi in the press conference on August 29 had described purification as another name for untouchability. He had demanded action under the SC-ST Act and registration of FIR against the people involved in this case. Amit alleged that Rahul Gandhi or his representatives did not try to know the facts from the people associated with the program and directly made serious allegations. He says that after these comments, social and political pressure has increased on him and the people associated with the committee.
Amit also expressed concern about security
The complainant claimed that after Rahul Gandhi's statement he was receiving threats and people were being instigated against him. He has said that his family lives in fear, citing threats to their social prestige, livelihood and security. Amit Kumar has also demanded the police to investigate the video recording of Rahul Gandhi's press conference, social media posts and photo-videos related to the programs of August 8 and 11.
Case under BNS and SC-ST Act
According to Haldwani Police, based on the complaint, an FIR has been registered under various sections of the Indian Justice Code (BNS). It includes provisions related to increasing enmity between different groups and hurting religious sentiments. Relevant sections of SC-ST Act, 1989 have also been imposed in the case. Copies of the FIR have been sent to the concerned officials including the Senior Superintendent of Police of Nainital and the National Commission for Scheduled Castes. At present the police is investigating the entire matter.
Political rhetoric is also intense between Congress and BJP regarding this dispute. Congress is linking it to anti-Dalit thinking, while the ruling party says that after the public meeting, there was dirt in the ground and objectionable slogans were raised at the religious place.