Haldwani ‘Shuddhikaran’ Row: FIR Against Rahul Gandhi, Congress Hits Back

Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh has hit out at the BJP and RSS after an FIR was registered against Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi in connection with his remarks on a purification ritual in Uttarakhand's Haldwani.

The FIR was registered by Haldwani City Kotwali Police following a complaint over Gandhi's public comments regarding a 'shuddhikaran yajna' held in the city on Sunday.

The Congress has alleged that the action against Gandhi came while no action had been taken against those accused of carrying out the alleged discriminatory ritual.

Taking to X, Ramesh accused the BJP-RSS of targeting those raising concerns over caste discrimination instead of acting against those responsible.

"Rahul Gandhi Ji raised the issue of injustice, humiliation, and discrimination faced by Dalits in his press conference, and the BJP-RSS took less than 24 hours to prove him right. He highlighted the issue of untouchability and humiliation carried out in the name of "purification" after the rally of Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge in Uttarakhand, and demanded action against the BJP workers involved in it."

Ramesh also accused the Uttarakhand government of attempting to silence opposition voices.

He argued that the Constitution acts as a safeguard against discriminatory practices and alleged that this was the reason it faced opposition from the ruling establishment.

"This did not sit well with the BJP-RSS's double-engine government in Uttarakhand. That's why, even today, no action has been taken against the accused, but an FIR was filed against Rahul Gandhi, who is demanding justice, the very next day. This is the very mindset against which Baba Saheb's Constitution stands as the greatest wall. That's why the Constitution irks them; that's why they want to change it," he said.

The FIR was filed following a complaint by Amit Kumar, who belongs to the Scheduled Caste community.

Kumar alleged that Gandhi's remarks had hurt the sentiments of the Scheduled Caste community.

Rahul Gandhi had reportedly described the 'shuddhikaran yagya' as anti-Dalit.

The purification ritual was organised by a Hindu organisation after a Congress rally in Haldwani on August 8, which was attended by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge.