Scenes of violence and vandalism unfolded outside the residence of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Wednesday, 30 March, after Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers, led by Yuva Morcha president and Lok Sabha MP Tejasvi Surya, clashed with the police during a protest against Kejriwal's remarks on the recently released controversial movie 'The Kashmir Files'.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has dubbed the clashes as an attempt to "murder" Kejriwal, with Delhi Deputy CM Manish Sisodia slamming the BJP for acting like a "sore loser" after the AAP's massive victory in the recently concluded Punjab Assembly elections.
A case has been lodged in relation to the incident under Indian Penal Code Sections 186 (obstructing public servant from discharge of public functions), 353 (assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty), 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from his duty), as well as relevant sections of The Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, 1984.
Around 70 people were briefly detained by the police after the violence broke out on Wednesday afternoon. The police, later in the day, dispatched teams to arrest the persons booked in the case. A probe is underway into the incident.
‘Well Planned Conspiracy To Kill Arvind Kejriwal’: Manish Sisodia
Addressing the media after the incident, deputy CM Manish Sisodia said, "Due to AAP's victory and BJP's defeat in Punjab, BJP wants to murder Arvind Kejriwal. BJP goons were deliberately taken by the police to the residence of CM Kejriwal. They broke the CCTV cameras and barriers in front of the CM's residence."
"Anti-social elements have broken CCTV cameras and security barriers by attacking Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's house in Delhi. The boom barrier on the gate has also been broken," Sisodia earlier wrote on Twitter.
“Everything happened under the police’s presence. It’s obvious, this is a well planned conspiracy to attack Arvind Kejriwal. They are not able to defeat him or push him back. So now they want to finish him.”Manish Sisodia.
Reiterating that the "attack" is criminal and not political, Sisodia said, “They are playing a dangerous game. They want to assassinate Arvind Kejriwal. This is criminal, not political.”
Kejriwal, on 24 March, had commented in the Delhi Assembly on the BJP's demands of making the film tax-free in Delhi, saying that they must ask director Vivek Agnihotri to upload it on YouTube instead.
The Protests Led by Tejasvi Surya
Visuals from the ground captured Surya, along with a sea of people wielding BJP flags and placards, censuring Kejriwal's "insult" to Kashmiri Pandits, with the residence of the AAP leader heavily barricaded. The AAP leader's house was defaced with red paint amidst the chaos.
Addressing the media on Wednesday evening, Surya said that the protest was held against the way Kejriwal "mocked and made fun of massacre of Kashmiri Pandits (in Vidhan Sabha)."
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(Photo: IANS/Twitter)
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(Photo: IANS/Twitter)
Shortly after the incident, Surya had defended it on Twitter and said: "Kejriwal will have to apologise for insulting the Hindus of the country and the Yuva Morcha won't spare him until he apologises."
Surya has reiterated that the protests would continue until Kejriwal apologised for his remarks.
Earlier this week, reacting to the BJP legislators' demand to pronounce Vivek Agnihotri's new film 'The Kashmir Files' tax-free in the national capital, the Delhi CM had quipped that if they wanted to promote the film, it should be uploaded on YouTube.
"They are saying make The Kashmir Files tax-free. Well, put it on YouTube, it will be free," Kejriwal had declared, as members of the Delhi Assembly laughed.
What the Police Said
Speaking to The Quint, DCP North indicated that CM Arvind Kejriwal was not present when the mayhem began.
The DCP also responded to allegations of collusion between the Delhi Police and the BJP, saying, "That's not true. Strong arrangements were set up against the protestors. However, some 15-20 protestors managed to reach the FlagStaff road who were immediately removed."
Legal action is being taken in the matter.
DCP North Sagar Singh Kalsi said in a statement later that at around 11:30 am, a dharna was staged by around 150-200 protestors of BJP Yuva Morcha outside Kejriwal's residence against his remarks on the movie.
Kalsi told ANI that some protestors breached two barricades and reached the gates at around 1 pm and vandalised it with a box of saffron paint. They also broke a boom barrier and a CCTV camera.
Legal action is now being taken against the 70 people who have been detained, he added.
'If the CM Is Not Safe...': AAP Ups the Ante
AAP leader Raghav Chadha condemned Wednesday's attack, accusing the Delhi Police of allowing the BJP workers to "break barricades and CCTV cameras" in their presence.
Meanwhile, AAP leader Atishi also repeated Sisodia's concerns, asking Amit Shah why the BJP wanted to get Kejriwal killed when he's emerging as "an alternative to the ruling party in the country."
Swati Maliwal, the chairperson of the Delhi Commission for Women, wrote:
Workers of the AAP came out in support of Kejriwal, denouncing the scenes of vandalism. A protest ensued at the BJP office in Mumbai's Nariman Point, where they demanded the arrest of BJP MLC Pravin Darekar.
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