National Herald case: Rahul asked to appear on June 17; Cong accuses BJP of blocking political activities

Top Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has been asked to appear before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the National Herald case again on Friday as his questioning remained inconclusive despite three days of quizzing, even as the Congress upped the ante by intensifying protests and Delhi Police entering the party headquarters to pick up some protesters.

According to ED sources, the investigators are seeking answers about his "personal role" in taking decisions with regard to National Herald and Young Indian Ltd. The ED has questioned him for more than 30 hours in three days and as Rahul sought exemption on Thursday, he has been called again on Friday.

Congress accused the Narendra Modi government of blocking political activities by preventing party workers from entering its headquarters even as it staged another round of protests near the agency's office, party headquarters and Parliament.

Video grabs showed the police entering the Congress headquarters to detain protesters while a journalist was also seen pulled away by a group of policemen while he was questioning a senior police official. Another video on social media shared by Congress leaders showed a policeman kicking a Congress worker who was being detained.

Read | Cong protests Rahul's questioning, around 800 detained

"Today, Delhi Police forcibly entered the HQ of India’s oldest political party. As they burst the doors open to the AICC HQ, they trampled upon the democracy our forefathers fought and gave their lives for. BJP has truly killed Indian democracy. It doesn’t get darker than this," Congress General Secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal tweeted.

While Congress alleged Delhi Police personnel forcibly entered its headquarters and beat up party workers and leaders, police denied the claim and said they were trying to close the gate of Congress office in order to prevent a procession from being taken out. "In this process, their might be some scrimmage, but police had not tried to enter the premises of the AICC and they had no reason to enter," police said.

Several leaders and workers, including former Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Sachin Pilot, were detained during the protest near the ED headquarters and Congress office while a group of MPs, including Lok Sabha Whip Manickam Tagore, Thirunavakkarasuar and A Chella Kumar, staged a protest at the Gandhi Statue in Parliament, accusing the police of acting like a BJP agent by not allowing them to go to the Congress office.

Rahul also got support from West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee who condemned the ED action against the Congress leader during her address to a joint Opposition meet on Presidential elections here. Sources said she hit out at the government and condemned the way in which Rahul was being harassed by the ED at the behest of the Modi government.

As protests were happening, Rahul reached the ED office at 11:35 AM for the third day of questioning. He was grilled by the ED for around 22 hours in the last two days in connection with the National Herald case.

The party fielded two Chief Ministers Ashok Gehlot and Bhupesh Baghel to attack the BJP government on conducting investigations in a "bogus" case even as the accused the BJP government of blocking political activities by preventing party workers from entering AICC headquarters. They warned that the BJP-led government will face consequences and said this was the first time in the country's history that workers were not allowed to enter a national party's office.

"The atmosphere in the country is in front of everyone to see. I could not bring my own staff inside the AICC office. No one else is allowed. Political activists cannot enter their party offices. This is happening for the first time in the country," Baghel said.

"You can only suppress someone till a limit, and now, all limits have been crossed," Baghel, whose convoy was stopped by Delhi Police on Tuesday from visiting Badarpur Police Station where some party leaders were detained, told a press conference.

Gehlot said no one knows what will happen tomorrow and there was a "sense of fear" everywhere. "Party workers are stopped from entering our own office. Democracy is in danger, and the Constitution is being violated. The approach of RSS-BJP is very dangerous," he said.

Party chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala demanded that Rahul's questioning be live-streamed, as he accused the ruling BJP of feeding wrong information about the ED case to news channels.

AICC general secretary and party's chief spokesperson Randeep Surewala alleged that the BJP dispensation "continued to feed wrong information about the ED case against Rahul Gandhi to TV channels". He added, "let the prime minister and the home minister also join the probe and sit there, and let the country see this is only a facade because there is no case and nothing to ask."

Youth Congress and Mahila Congress workers, who were protesting outside the Congress office on Akbar Road, were forcibly taken away by police. Delhi Congress workers staged the protest near ED office, who were also detained.

Tagore, who along with other MPs held a protest in Parliament, said they came to the Parliament House as they were not allowed to go to the Congress office.