Could Rahul Gandhi be arrested for Parliament scuffle amid Ambedkar row?

Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s remarks on Dr BR Ambedkar have stirred a massive political drama outside the Parliament.

Tensions flared on Thursday with both the BJP and the Congress accusing each other’s Members of Parliament (MPs) of “assault” during protests.

In the latest development, the saffron party has filed an FIR against Congress MP and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi for alleged physical assault and incitement during the scuffle.

This came while the police were yet to act on a Congress complaint against the BJP MPs who pushed Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge to the ground, causing serious injuries.

The Delhi Police has registered an FIR against Leader of Opposition
Rahul Gandhi based on a complaint filed by BJP’s Vadodara MP Hemang Joshi, who went to Parliament Street police station with party leaders Anurag Thakur and Bansuri Swaraj.

He also accused Gandhi and other opposition members of instigating physical aggression that led to injuries. “Mukesh Rajput sustained a severe injury to the back of his head, and Sarangi was hurt on his forehead,” he said.

The case was registered under Sections 115 (voluntary causing hurt), 117 (voluntary causing grievous hurt), 125 (act of endangering life or personal safety of others), 131 (use of criminal force), 351 (criminal intimidation) and 3(5) (common intention to commit crime) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).

He can be arrested without a warrant from the court, as Sections 117 and 125 are cognisable offences. However, arrest is not mandatory for offences that carry a jail term of up to seven years, as per Indian Express, which cited a 2014 case.

Additionally, all of these offences are bailable.

The chaotic scenes outside began on Thursday morning when the NDA and the INDIA bloc MPs, led by Gandhi and
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, held separate protests outside the Parliament over
Amit Shah’s controversial Ambedkar remarks.

The NDA MPs were protesting at the Makar Dwar (the main entrance to the building), while INDIA bloc MPs, carrying photographs of Ambedkar, were marching from the Ambedkar statue on the premises.

While the BJP MPs were on the stairs that led to the entrance, Gandhi and other opposition MPs insisted they be allowed to enter the building — not through the space suggested by security personnel but through the centre.

Unable to enter, Congress MPs K C Venugopal, Hibi Eden, Jothimani S, Praniti Shinde, and others climbed onto the wall near the steps with Ambedkar portraits and yelled slogans. Vadra and Congress MPs protested at the Old Parliament building’s front gate.

Sarangi and Rajput sustained injuries in the Parliament scuffle and were rushed to the Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital.

After learning about their injuries, visuals showed Gandhi walking up to the BJP MPs who were trying to help the 69-year-old Saranngi, when BJP MP Nishikant Dubey shouted, “Are you not ashamed, Rahul? You are resorting to gundagardi (rowdy behaviour). You pushed an old man.” “He pushed me,” Gandhi responded to Dubey as he walked away.

According to The Indian Express, which quoted Hospital Medical Superintendent Dr Ajay Shukla, the two MPs were in the ICU. Prime Minister Narendra Modi called up the injured MPs to enquire about their health, while several others visited them in the hospital.

The Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, also claimed that he too was assaulted as he, along with other MPs, reached Parliament’s Makar Dwar.

The party shared another video to back their claim, saying, “It is clearly visible in this video. BJP MPs are stopping opposition MPs from entering the House with sticks and placards in their hands. BJP MPs are pushing and shoving Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge ji, Priyanka Gandhi ji, and other women MPs. This is sheer hooliganism. There is BJP’s dictatorship in the temple of democracy. This will not be tolerated at any cost.”

In a counterclaim, the grand-old party strongly denied the allegations and accused BJP MPs of pushing Kharge and “physically manhandling” Gandhi.

A delegation of Congress MPs, including Pramod Tiwari, Digvijaya Singh, Rajiv Shukla, and Mukul Wasnik, filed a complaint with the police, alleging BJP MP’s misconduct. “Eighty-four-year-old Dalit leader Mallikarjun Kharge was pushed around and misbehaved with,” Congress MP Tiwari said.

In their complaint, the MPs said, “While the protest was completely peaceful in nature and marked by displaying placards and images of the late Dr BR Ambedkar, certain unscrupulous Members of Parliament (MPs) belonging to the BJP stood in the way of the protest march with the sole intention of causing ruckus.”

“Despite their repeated attempts at disturbing the peaceful protest, the Opposition MPs did not budge… in their bid to stop the protest march, the BJP MPs exerted physical force on Shri Kharge Ji by pushing him to the ground. This has inflicted bodily injuries to Shri Kharge Ji, Shri Neeraj Dangi and others,” the complaint stated, seeking an FIR against BJP MPs under sections of causing hurt, assault and use of criminal force.”

The party has also written to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, urging him to investigate the matter.

In the letter, Kharge said, “I was physically pushed by BJP MPs,” adding that the altercation caused him to lose his balance and fall to the ground.

He described the incident as “an assault not just on me personally but on the Leader of the Opposition, Rajya Sabha, and the Congress President.”

Congress MP Manickam Tagore described the FIR against Gandhi as a “diversionary tactic” and accused Amit Shah and his allies of attempting to silence dissent. “Defending Babasaheb Ambedkar’s legacy is a badge of honour, not a crime.”

The confrontation between the BJP and Congress erupted over remarks made by Amit Shah on Dr BR Ambedkar in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.

As per Hindustan Times,
Shah’s comments came during his speech concluding the two-day debate on the “Glorious Journey of 75 Years of the Constitution of India.”

His remarks sparked a furious response from the Congress leaders and led to protests outside the Parliament on Wednesday and Thursday.

Countering the protests, NDA MPs too held demonstrations as Parliament remained stalled with the row.