Congress seeks meeting with President Kovind over 'police atrocities' on members

Congress leaders have sought a meeting with President Ram Nath Kovind on Friday to raise the issue of “police atrocities’ on party MPs, leaders and workers protesting against the Enforcement Directorate’s questioning of Rahul Gandhi and “misuse” of central agencies, as it decided to intensify the protests.

Anticipating the ED to summon Rahul on Monday and Tuesday as well, sources said MPs have also been asked to reach the national capital by Sunday and provide accommodation to the maximum number of party workers at their official residences and plan protest marches from there.

Congress apprehends that police will continue to prevent protests and entry into Congress headquarters on Akbar Road and in such a scenario, the MPs along with party workers should hold protests at their residence, sources said. On Wednesday, police had barricaded Congress MP Deepender Hooda’s residence.

Also Read: Congress files complaint against Delhi Police over 'manhandling' its members

These decisions were taken at a meeting of Congress General Secretaries, party in-charges, MPs and senior leaders available in Delhi. The meeting was attended by Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress General Secretaries KC Venugopal, Mukul Wasnik and Ajay Maken as well Rajya Sabha Chief Whip Jairam Ramesh among others.

The meeting came as Congress MPs met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu to register their protest against the "ill-treatment" meted out to them by the Delhi Police.

The party's legal cell also shot off a legal notice to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Home Minister Amit Shah and Law Minister Kiren Rijiju asking them to ensure that the ED immediately stop "spreading false narratives" about Rahul Gandhi, who is being questioned by the agency, for "ulterior political motives" and as a "tool to settle political scores". It also asked them to fix responsibility on who has "resorted to such illegalities" by causing the leak.

A delegation of Lok Sabha, led by Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, met Birla while one led by Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge led a team of Rajya Sabha MPs to Naidu, explaining the police actions against them in the past couple of days during their agitation against the ED questioning Rahul Gandhi.

In their letter to Naidu, the Congress MPs said they were writing to him to register their "strongest possible protest" against the "atrocious manner" in which the Delhi Police "misbehaved" with Congress MPs.

They also referred to the "actions of Delhi Police just outside the office of the Congress", which they described as "totally unprovoked and brazen violation of all norms". They said on June 15, Delhi Police entered the Congress office and "lathicharged MPs, journalists and Congress workers'', while providing a "pen drive of some videos".

Addressing the media, Kharge said the police action was meant to "harass and mentally torture" the MPs and the erring police personnel should be summoned by the Parliament by invoking the clauses of breach of privilege of lawmakers. Besides Kharge, the MPs who met Naidu included P Chidambaram, KC Venugopal, Jairam Ramesh, Jebi Mather and Syed Nasir Hussain among others.

Chidambaram said the police action was a violation of liberty as well as privileges of a lawmaker. “The MPs were detained for 8-12 hours without a written, legal order. They were not arrested. No reason was given. If they were arrested, police should have informed the presiding officers of Parliament,” he said.

In their meeting with Birla too, MPs Chowdhury, Manickam Tagore, Kodikkunnil Suresh and others, raised the issue of police atrocities and demanded action against them. "Even in police station, some personnel misbehaved with MPs as if we were terrorists.

Also Read: Police use water cannon to disperse Punjab Congress workers

"We met the Speaker and raised the issue of the manner in which our MPs and leaders were treated by the Delhi police and sought action against the accused police officers,” Chowdhury told reporters.

Congress has also filed a complaint with Delhi Police against its personnel for "trespassing" into its headquarters on Akbar Road on Wednesday and "manhandling and attacking" party workers "without provocation".

A delegation of senior leaders, including Avinash Pande, Harish Choudhary, Pranav Jha and Challa Vamshi Chand Reddy met senior officials on Wednesday and handed over a "detailed complaint" and highlighting the "brazen and illegal actions" of police at Congress office, a charge denied by the police.