Ahead of Congress' Chintan Shivir, BJP MP Kirodi Lal Meena alleges police forced him to leave Udaipur

On Thursday evening, BJP Rajya Sabha MP Kirodi Lal Meena was taken from Udaipur to Jaipur by police. They halted in Beawar (Ajmer) where he shot a video statement, saying he will attend a 'Sadhan Shivir' of Shankaracharya in Pushkar, and if the police do not allow him, he will hold a dharna.

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Udaipur: Ahead of the three-day Chintan Shivir of Congress starting in Udaipur on Friday (May 13), the BJP's Rajya Sabha MP Kirodi Lal Meena has alleged that he was pressured by the police to leave the city. Meena, who reached Rajasthan's Udaipur on Wednesday night, said he was to attend a condolence meeting and has also been invited to a tribal conference in Dhariawad on May 14, but police officers did not allow him to move out of the hotel where he was staying, said a PTI report.

On Thursday evening, the BJP MP was taken from Udaipur to Jaipur by police. They halted in Beawar (Ajmer) where he shot a video statement, saying he will attend a 'Sadhan Shivir' of Shankaracharya in Pushkar, and if the police do not allow him, he will hold a dharna, claiming that policemen had been deployed outside the hotel.

In a video statement, Meena said, "I am being told to leave (Udaipur). They are pressuring me. Officers say they have orders from their higher-ups but could not show me the orders. This is a violation of my rights and murder of democracy," adding "I have informed the Rajasthan leader of opposition Gulab Chand Kataria, (BJP state president) Satish Poonia and (deputy leader of the opposition) Rajendra Rathore about the matter."

Udaipur Superintendent of Police Manoj Kumar, however, told PTI, "There was a possibility of disturbance to law and order due to Kirodi Meena's presence in Udaipur. So, he was sent to Jaipur." In the hotel room in Udaipur, he also had a heated argument with the police officers on being asked to leave the place.

In his video statement, Meena said he wanted to hold a press conference in Udaipur to draw the attention of Congress president Sonia Gandhi that the hotel where the 'Chintan Shivir' is going to be held was illegal and the Gehlot government gave clearance to the hotel in violation of the rules.

He reportedly said that he wanted to raise the issue of law and order, and atrocities against women in the Congress rule in Rajasthan but he was taken away from Udaipur, adding "Police picked me from a hotel in Udaipur where I was staying. I had gone there to attend a condolence meeting, I wanted to do a press conference to raise the issues like law and order, migration from tribal areas, exploitation of women, human trafficking, religious conversion, and poverty."

Meena said police officers, including an additional SP, travelled with him in the vehicle and alleged that he was also not allowed to visit the Srinath temple in Rajsamand, adding "I am being tortured by the police. If the police stop me from going to Pushkar tomorrow, I will hold a dharna."

Meena said that a three-day 'Sadhan Shivir' is being held in Pushkar and he wants to attend that but the police are stopping him from going there too. In another video, Meena is seen running on the road with police officers.

Meanwhile, BJP state president Satish Poonia has condemned the behaviour of police with Meena in Udaipur.

Rahul Gandhi takes train to Udaipur to attend Chintan Shivir

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday boarded a train for Udaipur from Delhi's Sarai Rohilla railway station along with some other senior leaders of the party as he headed to the party's three-day 'Chintan Shivir'. He was greeted with flowers and slogans by party workers as he reached the railway station in the evening.

The former Congress chief was also welcomed by coolies at the Sarai Rohilla station and their delegation shared its concerns with him. 

The Congress had booked two bogies for the train as many party leaders, including Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and former Union minister Jairam Ramesh, were travelling along with Gandhi on the train to attend the session from May 13 to May 15.

The three-day 'Nav Sankalp Chintan Shivir' is being held in the backdrop of a string of electoral defeats and dissent in the party over the past many years.

The Shivir will focus on time-bound party restructuring, finding ways to combat politics of polarisation and getting battle-ready for upcoming electoral challenges.
It will begin Friday afternoon following which over 400 delegates will discuss subject-specific issues across six groups.

(With Agency Inputs)