Delhi Police use water cannons to disperse protesting Cong workers
Darpan News Desk IANS, 21 Jul, 2022 12:31 PM
New Delhi, July 21 (IANS) Hundreds of Congress workers were staging protests at different locations in the national capital over their party's interim President Sonia Gandhi being summoned by the Enforcement Directorate on Thursday.
Outside the party headquarters at 24, Akbar Road, the Delhi Police used water cannons to disperse the protesters who were trying to cross the barricades placed by the police.
Former Union Minister P. Chidambaram said his party is protesting the ED summons to Sonia Gandhi. "The AJL-Young India transaction is recorded in the books of account, the returns filed by the two companies and in the Income Tax returns. All that the ED wants to know can be found in the records," he said.
He further said the Income Tax case is pending before SC. "ED is not higher than the SC. What is that the ED wants to 'investigate' that will not be examined by the SC? ED is overreaching the SC and trying to intimidate the Congress party. The Congress party will not bow down to the intimidation," Chidambaram said.
The Congress party workers were seen pushing the barricades.
Meanwhile, as a preventive action, the police detained several party leaders including Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, former Union Minister P. Chidambaram, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Sachin Pilot, Ajay Maken, Deependra Hooda, IYC president B. Srinivas among several others.
The party leaders alleged that the police were not allowing them to even protest against the government and are continuously harassing them.
The detained party leaders were taken to Utsav Sadan in Kingsway Camp police lines.
The Fourth Additional District and Session's Court Judge B.R. Pallavi has convicted Adithya Rao (37), the accused in the case. He was found guilty under Section 4 of the Explosive Substances Act 1908 and Section 16 of the Prevention of Unlawful Activities Act 1967. He has also been fined Rs 10,000.
The first of the session commenced with Pro-tem Speaker Inderbir Singh Nijjar administering the oath of office and secrecy to Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann as Member of the Vidhan Sabha. Breaking the convention, all women members were administered oath after the Chief Minister.
The ruling BJP and opposition Congress, meanwhile, locked horns in the assembly over the bandh. The BJP sought action against those who are going against court verdict and the Congress maintained that they have the right to protest.
The plea sought a direction to the SEC to conduct the municipal elections in Delhi, according to the initially conceived schedule, before the expiry of the tenure of the Municipal Corporations of Delhi, in May 2022, in a free and fair manner. The petition contended that the SEC, on March 9, issued a press note for holding the polls in April.
Modi met Morrison in Washington for their first in person meeting after the Covid-19. This meeting was held last September on the margin of Quad leaders summit 2021.
The SYL canal, the major portions of which were completed in the 1990s at a cost of over Rs 750 crore, is entangled in a political and legal quagmire with Punjab and Haryana unwilling to give up their respective stands on the controversial canal issue and sharing of river water.
