The Congress has come down heavily over the “barbaric” police action against the protesting wrestlers at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar that transpired on Sunday and demanded an explanation from the Union home ministry, The party also demanded action against all police personnel who wrongfully and ‘in a brutal manner’ detained the wrestlers.
Delhi police on Sunday removed tents and other installations set up by protesting wrestlers at Jantar Mantar after they were detained for allegedly breaching the security cordon. The wrestlers were detained while trying to move towards the new Parliament building to hold a women’s ‘Maha Panchayat’.
“The daughters of the nation who brought medals are being dragged in the street and beaten brutally like some terrorists. History was scripted today when a Parliament, which lacks the intent of being democratic, was inaugurated and the molester of those wrestlers was being welcomed in the Parliament when the wrestlers were being beaten. The wrestlers are only demanding justice for the last one month but all they are getting in return is the government’s silence and brutality,” Congress social media head Supriya Shrinate said while addressing a press conference.
Also Read: ‘Govt shames itself’: Priyanka Chaturvedi on police detaining wrestlers
Shrinate who was visibly emotional during the press briefing further urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to oust Brijbhushan Sharan Singh as the MP by today evening.
The agitating wrestlers led by Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat, and Sakshi Malik, along with several others, are protesting against former Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Singh, who is also a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP, demanding his arrest for alleged sexual harassment of several women grapplers, including a minor.
“Till today, Singh, who has serious charges under the POCSO act holds the post of the WFI president and it would be impossible if PM Modi or Amit Shah (Union homes minister) didn’t have any role to play in it. If someone thinks that history will be created by making big monuments then it is not true. The PM cannot bring them justice, not be answerable, not investigate their claims but these girls should not have been manhandled like how we say today. We demand Singh’s immediate resignation and justice for the protestors,” Shrinate added.
Mahila Congress chief Netta D’Souza who has been actively supporting the wrestlers’ agitation ever since the protests sparked last month said, “When the wrestlers were protesting today, they had the Indian flag in their hands and they were not some Talibani terrorists. I want to ask the Delhi police and the home minister who gave the police the right to manhandle the wrestlers when they had the Indian flag in their hands. Every person responsible for this should come under the scanner for disrespecting the daughters and our national flag,”
D’Souza too raised an objection over Brij Bhushan Singh’s MP tag and asked whether he will continue to sit in the New Parliament while adding, “Is this PM Modi’s new India.”
Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi targeted PM Modi saying, “The arrogant king is crushing the voice of the public.”
The protesting wrestlers on Sunday hit out at the Delhi police for detaining them while attempting to carry out a march towards the new Parliament building, saying that the “world is watching” them.
Also Read: AAP leaders condemn ‘forceful detention, mistreatment’ of wrestlers by Delhi police
Sakshi Malik shared a video of the police detaining her fellow wrestlers and said that “This is how our champions are being treated”.
Chaotic scenes were witnessed in the video as wrestlers and police officers shoved and pushed each other as the police and security personnel dragged the wrestlers forcefully and pushed them into the police bus.
Security had been beefed up at Jantar Mantar after the protesting wrestlers called for a woman ‘Mahapanchayar’ before the new parliament building. The agitating wrestlers have been demanding the arrest of BJP MP and WFI chief Brij Bhushan Singh, who is accused of sexually harassing women wrestlers.