Oppn to meet CJI tomorrow, govt created atmosphere of fear ahead of youth agitation: Kharge
New Delhi, Oct 11 (IANS) Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday said that opposition leaders would meet the Chief Justice of India (CJI) to apprise him of their concerns, alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah were creating an atmosphere of chaos in the country.
Kharge said he had written a letter seeking an appointment with the CJI, adding that the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, had also written to him. The party has sought time between 4 p.m. and 5 p.m. for the meeting.
“Tomorrow, we are also going to meet the Chief Justice of India. I have written a letter, and Rahul has also written a letter. We have sought a time between 4 and 5 (p.m). Now, let us see. We will also apprise him. We cannot demand anything from him. We will only request him with folded hands. These are the things that should be kept in mind,” he said.
Alleging that the government was creating an atmosphere of fear ahead of the announced youth agitation, the Congress chief questioned the deployment of a large number of security personnel.
“In the country, chaos is being created by the Prime Minister and Home Minister. Nearly 32,000 policemen and nearly 7,500 CRF were deployed yesterday, which itself shows how much fear he has got because of the announced youth agitation,” he said.
Kharge also compared the situation with the Emergency. “Yesterday also, youths were agitating, but even during the Emergency, such things did not happen. During the Emergency, we were all ministers. No trains were stopped, no flights were stopped, nothing. People used to move freely,” he said.
Recalling his experience as a Karnataka minister during the Emergency, when D. Devaraj Urs was the Chief Minister, he said that people were not unnecessarily arrested.
“I was the Education Minister at that time, and Devaraj Urs was the Chief Minister of the state. We never unnecessarily arrested any people. In fact, many people used to come and request Devaraj Urs, ‘Kindly arrest us.’ Then he refused to arrest them. He said, ‘On what ground can I arrest?'” Kharge said.
The Congress President also targeted the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) over the legal protection provided to the head of the Election Commission of India and its members under the 2023 law, alleging that the government had introduced the legislation to protect them from legal action.
“To create such an atmosphere, PM Modi brought the 2023 Act to protect the Chief Election Commissioner and members. That immunity he gave. That immunity is not even for the President of India, not the Chief Justice, but that is given to one Election Commissioner,” he said.
His remarks come amid the Congress’s continuing allegations of electoral irregularities and its criticism of the government’s handling of protests.
–IANS
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