 "Congress files 123 FIRs across Uttarakhand over Kharge ‘purification’ row – here’s who came up with the idea")
New Delhi: The dispute over the alleged ‘purification’ of a venue in Haldwani after Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge’s rally has spread across Uttarakhand, with the Congress filing FIRs at 123 police stations.
The move came after a first information report (FIR) was filed against Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi in Uttarakhand following his comments on the incident at a press conference in Delhi. The Congress then decided to file FIRs across the state against the people it holds responsible for the purification ceremony.
Uttarakhand Congress President Ganesh Godiyal said on Tuesday (September 1) party office-bearers and workers have filed FIRs at 123 police stations against BJP leaders. The FIRs seek action against those responsible for the incident.
According to government data, Uttarakhand has 167 police stations and outposts. The Congress action therefore covers a large part of the state’s police network.
Godiyal said the decision to approach police stations across the state was taken during a meeting of the Uttarakhand Congress committee.
He said the initial plan was to file a few FIRs. During the meeting, the party decided that Congress workers or office-bearers should go to police stations across the state and lodge complaints.
He emphasised the decision came from the Uttarakhand Congress unit, not from the party’s central leadership in Delhi. He said the idea was proposed during the state committee meeting.
The FIRs have been filed against the Shri Ram Sena Dharmarth Seva Nyas. Amit Kumar of the trust had filed an FIR against Gandhi on August 30 under stringent sections of the SC/ST Act.
Godiyal has accused BJP State President Mahendra Bhatt and Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami of being responsible for the incident. He alleged that it happened with their encouragement. The BJP has distanced itself from the trust.
He said the Congress did not have a political motive behind the FIRs and argued that the BJP had used the issue for political gain.
Political observers see a larger electoral angle in the Congress campaign over the Haldwani incident. They believe the party is using the issue to reach Dalit voters in Punjab and Uttar Pradesh, where voters belonging to Scheduled Castes form a sizeable part of the electorate.
Uttarakhand itself has a Dalit population of around 19%. Voters from the community can influence the outcome in 21 of the state’s 70 assembly constituencies.
The Congress is also preparing for a major rally in Dehradun on September 7. It is expected to serve as the party’s first major show of strength in the state around the issue. There has been no confirmation so far on whether Kharge or Gandhi will attend the rally.
Kharge held a rally in Haldwani on August 8. Three days later, on August 11, members of the Nyas carried out a purification ceremony at the venue.
The issue came up within the Congress on August 19, when the party national president mentioned the incident during a Congress Working Committee (CWC) meeting.
He said only a few CWC members had raised the issue, while several leaders with large social media followings had not commented on it.
Gandhi then held a press conference in Delhi on August 29 and addressed the purification controversy. An FIR was filed against him in Uttarakhand the following day.
The Congress responded by taking the issue across the state. By Tuesday afternoon, party workers and office-bearers filed FIRs at 123 police stations against the trust, turning what began as an incident at one venue into a statewide political and legal confrontation.
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