On Wednesday, a high-level delegation of Congress leaders met with President Ram Nath Kovind, urging him to dismiss Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Mishra Teni, whose son Ashish Mishra was arrested, and to direct the formation of an independent judicial investigation by a commission comprised of two sitting Supreme Court of India or high court judges.
According to the Indian Express, senior Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, AK Antony, Ghulam Nabi Azad, and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra told the President that the “unforgivable and merciless murder of farmers in Lakhimpur Kheri” has “scarred the soul of India.”
“This deliberate act of murder, in broad daylight, followed by the audacious reactions of the State and Central Governments, has completely eroded the people’s faith in those tasked with bringing these perpetrators to justice,” the Congress said in a memorandum submitted to the President.
Referring to the ongoing protests by farmer groups on the outskirts of Delhi against the three contentious farm laws, Congress leaders told President Trump that “the Modi Government has refused to relent or have a meaningful conversation with them” (the farmers). Their policy appears to be to “tire and retire” the Anndatas, a doomed strategy.
“It is important to note in this context that on September 27th, 2021, the day of the Bharat Bandh called by protesting farmers against the three black laws, Ajay Mishra Teni, MoS Home Affairs, openly threatened the agitating farmers and even boasted about his dubious antecedents in a public function.” His speech video has been played on various public platforms and is in the public domain. “How can justice be served when the original provocation came from the Union Minister of State for Home Affairs himself?” According to the memorandum.
Congress has been criticizing the Uttar Pradesh government led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for the violence. It has also called Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s silence on the issue into question.
Priyanka and Rahul, who visited the Tikunia village in Lakhimpur Kheri, where the violence occurred, poked fun at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was in Lucknow to inaugurate development projects. According to Congress leaders, the Prime Minister does not have time to visit Lakhimpur Kheri.
Meanwhile, the BJP stated that there is a lot of politics surrounding the Lakhimpur Kheri incident. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said that Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi were attempting to portray themselves as “champions of Dalits.”