New Delhi: A First Information Report (FIR) was filed Sunday against Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi under several sections of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 after he sought legal action against those who conducted a ‘purification ritual’ following Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s visit to Haldwani.
The complainant alleged that Gandhi had hurt the sentiments of the Valmiki community in giving a caste angle to a religious ritual.
On 8 August, Kharge visited Haldwani where he addressed a public meeting at Ramlila Maidan. Three days later, members of the Shri Ram Sena Dharmarth Seva Nyas allegedly performed a purification ritual at the same premises. As unverifiable videos of the event went viral on social media, the Congress leadership demanded an FIR against those who had conducted the ritual.
The Uttarakhand Police has now registered an FIR against Gandhi after receiving a complaint from Amit Kumar under several sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) associated with promoting enmity, hatred, or ill-will between different groups based on religion, race, language, caste, or community, and deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage the religious feelings of any group of citizens by insulting their religion or beliefs and relevant sections of the SC/ST Act.
According to the FIR, a copy of which was accessed by ThePrint, the complainant alleged that based on false and incomplete facts, Gandhi “used caste-slurred and derogatory words against Scheduled Castes” concerning the sanitation and religious rituals held at Ramlila Maidan on 10 August, thereby “creating enmity within the community”.
“Based on the submitted complaint, an FIR under Sections 196/299 BNS and Section 3(1) of the SC/ST Act has been registered at this police station,” the FIR read.
The FIR comes after the Congress attack, saying that the incident reflected the BJP’s “anti-Dalit mindset”. The BJP, however, defended the ritual, claiming that the venue was left littered following Kharge’s rally and that slogans inappropriate for a religious site had been raised there.
At a press conference on 29 August, Gandhi criticised the alleged purification ritual and demanded an FIR under the SC/ST Act against those responsible. “Whatever happened to Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge ji in Haldwani is untouchability against him, disguised as ‘purification’—and untouchability is a punishable offence under the Indian Constitution. Twenty days have passed since then—but no action has been taken yet, no FIR has been filed,” Gandhi said.
Attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Gandhi said that his “anti-Dalit ideology is clearly visible to every Dalit individual in the country”. He had added: “Now the ball is in the BJP’s court, an FIR must be filed under the SC/ST Act at the earliest, action must be taken, and justice must be served, otherwise the Congress Party knows very well how to secure justice.”
(Edited by Nardeep Singh Dahiya)