Row over Mallikarjun Kharge visit ‘purification’: Haldwani police file FIR against ‘unknown’ persons

On Monday, the FIR against “unknown” persons was registered at Haldwani Kotwali on the complaint of Anju, a social activist and lawyer based in the city, who was the first person to submit a formal complaint in the matter, police said.

On Tuesday, Nainital SSP Manjunath TC told The Indian Express: “We received various petitions and applications from organisations, political parties… across the state concerning the alleged events at Ramlila Maidan on the 10th (of August) … specifically the cleaning, rituals, and the alleged purification ceremony.”

“We were conducting a legal review of all these applications. During this legal scrutiny, we learned that Anju had been the first to lodge a formal written complaint at the Haldwani Kotwali police station. She had also provided relevant videos to the Station House Officer and other officials,” he said.

“Consequently, based on her formal complaint, we have registered an FIR against unknown persons under Sections 196 and 299 of the IPC and Section 3(1)(r) of the SC/ST Act,” he said.

The FIR invoked Section 3(1)(r) of the SC/ST Act for caste-based insult/humiliation, and Sections 196 and 299 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for promoting enmity between groups and deliberately outraging religious feelings.

The FIR did not name any accused.

The complaint by Anju alleged that after Kharge addressed the rally on August 8, the venue was “purified” on August 10 and photographs and videos were circulated on social media.

“It is particularly noteworthy that Shri Mallikarjun Kharge is a person belonging to the Scheduled Caste category,” the complaint said.

It said that, in these circumstances, having the venue “purified” after his programme “prima facie appears to be an act intended to create caste discrimination, social insult and hatred and feelings of inferiority towards a person belonging to the Scheduled Caste”.

The complaint also asked the police to investigate a separate video circulated on social media, describing it as “misleading, objectionable and possibly edited”.

It alleged that religious slogans were presented in a controversial manner with an attempt to create “hatred and animosity” towards a particular religious community.

SSP Manjunath said the investigation would now focus on the allegations contained in the complaint and the material submitted to police.

“Considering the sensitivity of the case, we have entrusted the investigation to Jagdish Chandra, a senior officer who was formerly a senior PPS officer and has now been promoted to the IPS cadre,” he said.

In New Delhi, a group of Dalit Congress MPs and leaders reached the Parliament Street police station, seeking an FIR in the matter.

K Raju, Congress leader and national coordinator for the SC, OBC, Minority and Adivasi Departments, said that the group of MPs, comprising 20 Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha members, reached the police station to file an FIR “against an act of untouchability” committed against the Congress president.

“Even after two hours of persuasion by the MPs, the SHO refused to register zero FIR. If this is what is happening to SC and ST MPs, one can imagine the plight of ordinary SC/ST citizens,” Raju said.

Pointing out that a stage in Haldwani was “purified” after Kharge’s address, Congress MP Sasikanth Senthil said, “That is untouchability. It is a crime under the law. An FIR against Rahul Gandhi took one day. Against the men who did this? One month and nothing.”