THE FIR lodged against the Leader of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi, for assault and attempt to murder are serious enough to weaken his dignity as a staunch critic of the government. Like the first ever no-confidence motion against the chairperson of the Rajya Sabha, Jagdeep Dhankar, who is the vice president of India, this is the very first time in the history of independent India that a Leader of the Opposition has been accused of attempting to murder. Predictably, the no-confidence motion against Jagdeep Dhankar was dismissed.
On his part, Rahul Gandhi has accused the BJP of standing outside the entrance of Parliament “with sticks to block our entry to Parliament which is our right.” The senior Congress leader, Mallikarjiun Kharge, was also reportedly injured on the knees after he fell when he was jostled.
The incident occurred on Thursday, December 19, 2024 when MPs from the INDIA bloc and BJP confronted each other outside Parliament’s Makar Dwar. It turned into high-voltage drama after BJP MP Pratap Chandra Sarangi accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi of pushing an MP, resulting in a gash on his forehead which was bleeding.
KHARGE CLAIMS
AT the same time, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge claimed that he was pushed by BJP MPs, causing a knee injury. Both the parties, BJP and Congress, went to the police station to complain against each other. BJP filed a complaint with the Delhi police station against Rahul Gandhi for assault and incitement. There were six sections filed including Section 109 — an attempt to murder and Section 117 — the crime of voluntarily causing grievous hurt.
“We have mentioned in detail the incident today outside Makar Dwar, where NDA MPs were protesting peacefully… We have given a complaint under Sections 109, 115, 117, 125, 131 and 351,” BJP MP Anurag Thakur told media persons.
Priyanka Gandhi rushed to the defence of her brother by saying she was an eyewitness and it was false to allege that Rahul Gandhi had pushed anybody. “We have been protesting peacefully outside Parliament by holding placards for the last few days against Amit Shah’s alleged intemperate remarks against Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar. Today, we were prevented from entering Parliament and these (BJP) MPs were shouting, heckling and jostling us as we tried to enter Parliament,” she said.
What gives a colourful twist to the entire incident is the fact that a woman MP accused Rahul Gandhi of “coming too close to me, making me feel very uncomfortable. He was shouting.” When asked what exactly he shouted, she told the news reporter that she could not hear the words “because everybody was shouting.”
FIR & COUNTER FIR
THE Parliament Street police have taken down the FIR against Rahul Gandhi while another counter FIR was in the process of being taken down at the time of writing this news report. Soon after the BJP MPs went to Parliament Street police station to lodge an FIR against Rahul Gandhi, a delegation of Congress MPs also visited the police station to lodge a counter-complaint.
Given the fact that Rahul Gandhi was disqualified from sitting in Parliament after his remark about the Modi surname but was given a reprieve by the Supreme Court, it appears certain that the BJP MPs will move for a motion to disqualify him from sitting as the Leader of the Opposition after the FIR against him is registered.
What is more interesting is that the police have no jurisdiction to take action against Rahul Gandhi without the permission of the Speaker of the Rajya Sabha, who is the Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar against whom the entire Opposition had united to initiate a no confidence motion against these things. Even more interesting is the National Capital Region of Delhi comes under the direct control of Union home minister, Amit Shah, who will have to give his nod to the Delhi police before an FIR is lodged.
Hence, the cards seem to be stacked against a beleaguered Rahul Gandhi, except for the fact that Mallikarjun Kharge was also injured in the melee. The woman MP from the northeast was shown on TV giving bytes to the TV news channels where she appeared remarkably composed, despite the Vice President’s assertion in the house that a woman MP had approached him in his chamber with a written complaint “against a male MP” — which could only have been Rahul Gandhi. “She was in very bad shape because she was in tears when she approached me,” said Dhankar.
Addressing a news conference at 4 pm, Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge alleged these were the tactics of the BJP to “prevent a discussion on the floor of the house about Amit Shah’s remarks about Dr Babasajheb Ambedkar. They were standing outside the entrance of Parliament with sticks to prevent us from entering,” Rahul Gandhi alleged at the press conference.
Whatever will emerge after the CCTV footage is scanned minutely, it appears that the ruling BJP has succeeded in what the Congress has alleged – that the discussion on the floor of the house about the remarks against Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar has now taken a backseat. Priyanka Gandhi was heard challenging the BJP MPs to raise the slogan: “Jai Bhim.”
With West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee projecting herself as the Leader of the Opposition and possibly a future prime ministerial candidate, the Opposition seems to be divided, with mainly Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah coming out in defence of Rahul Gandhi saying Rahul Gandhi would never assault any MP.