Our protest was peaceful, BJP MPs armed with sticks blocked us from entering Parliament: Rahul

New Delhi: Amidst a litany of complaints, charges and counter-charges over a scuffle outside the Parliament, Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi on Thursday outrightly rejected BJP’s claims that the Congress MPs created a ruckus and rather blamed the ‘anti-Ambedkar’ BJP for the ugly showdown near Makar Dwaar, the main entrance of the complex.

Addressing the media at Congress HQ, Rahul Gandhi said that the Congress was holding a peaceful demonstration over Amit Shah’s insulting remarks on Babasaheb Ambedkar and it was the BJP members, armed with sticks who created chaos by intimidating and threatening him and other INDIA bloc MPs.

“We were blocked and stopped on the stairs of the Parliament by the stick-wielding BJP lawmakers. We are still waiting for Amit Shah’s resignation over the insult to the Dalit icon,” he said, while dubbing the BJP as ‘anti-constitutional, anti-Ambedkar.’

He said that it was a deliberate attempt by the BJP government to deflect attention from the real issues. He also accused the BJP of deploying blatant means to erase the contributions of Ambedkar, the chief architect of the Constitution and said that Amit Shah’s statement in Rajya Sabha showed the intent and motive of this government.

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge also pinned blame on the BJP over the raging controversy, leading to injury to two of its MPs Pratap Sarangi and Mukesh Rajput and termed it a ‘well-crafted drama’ by the ruling party as part of its damage-control exercise.

Further, shedding light on what led to an ugly showdown outside the Parliament, Kharge said, “Since yesterday, we have been demanding either Amit Shah’s resignation or his sacking by the Prime Minister. Since nothing happened, our MPs gathered outside the Parliament to stage a demonstration.”

“We started our march from Babasaheb Ambedkar’s statue towards the Makar Dwaar. They stopped and blocked us from entering the House. We wanted to enter the House but they stopped us by force. Even women MPs were blocked and attacked,” he further said in direct charge at the BJP.

He dismissed BJP MPs’ claims of being pushed and shoved by Congressmen and stated that he was himself pushed aside, leading to his fall and injury to his knees.

Citing Amit Shah’s ‘calling Ambedkar…Ambedkar, has become a fashion’ remark, he also vowed to launch agitation against the ruling dispensation’s bid to ‘erode’ the contributions of Babasaheb Ambedkar.

IANS