New Delhi, Oct 15 Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Thursday slammed the Modi government over the detention of the parents of Ankita Bhandari, who was murdered in Uttarakhand in 2022, asking whether it has completely abandoned its duty of accountability that it now relies on detention to “silence” those who demand it.
Parents of 19-year-old Bhandari were released early Thursday, hours after being detained while protesting near India Gate against Dushyant Kumar Gautam’s appointment as Sikkim governor.
While being detained, her father issued a 24-hour ultimatum to the Centre to cancel Gautam’s appointment.
Tharoor said the people of the country have never needed permission to stand up for what is right and they must never be made to believe otherwise.
“Has the government so completely abandoned its duty of accountability that it now relies on detention to silence those who demand it? At Jantar Mantar, young citizens exercising their democratic right to peaceful protest, even while waving the Tricolour, find themselves in judicial custody.
“At India Gate, the grieving parents of Ankita Bhandari, seeking justice for their daughter, are detained at 4 in the morning, alongside Congress workers who stood in solidarity with them,” he said.
Tharoor stressed that a protester is not an offender and a grieving parent is not a threat.
The distinction should not need explaining to those entrusted with governing, he added.
“What threat to public order do peaceful protesters pose? What purpose is served by subjecting bereaved parents, already enduring an unimaginable tragedy, to such indignity?” the MP from Thiruvananthapuram said.
The Constitution does not guarantee citizens the right to protest only when their questions are convenient to those in power, he said.
“That right is not conditional upon the government’s approval. Nor can it be restricted merely because its exercise causes discomfort. The power to detain is not the power to silence. The demand for justice does not end at the gates of a police station. Nor does the courage to speak out disappear at the threat of arrest,” Tharoor said.
According to sources, Ankita’s parents were released around 5 am.
Ankita’s father threatened to launch a nationwide agitation if the government did not accept their demand. Her family has been alleging that Gautam played a key role in Ankita’s death.
“We give a 24-hour ultimatum to the government for the cancellation of Gautam’s appointment. Nationwide protests will be launched if the government does not accept our demand,” Ankita’s father told PTI Videos.
Apart from the Bhandari’s parents, several Congress leaders, including the party’s media and publicity department head Pawan Khera, party MP Imran Pratapgarhi, social media department head Supriya Shrinate and Indian Youth Congress chief Uday Bhanu Chib, were also detained and later released.
The parents have been demanding that Gautam’s appointment as Sikkim governor be put on hold until the ongoing CBI investigation into the case is complete.
Bhandari, who worked as a receptionist at the Vanantra Resort in Rishikesh, was killed on September 18, 2022.
Her body was recovered from the Chilla canal four days later. Resort owner Pulkit Arya, son of former BJP leader Vinod Arya, and two accomplices have been convicted in the case and sentenced to life imprisonment.
The case hogged the political spotlight over allegations that an unidentified VIP was linked to the crime. Bhandari’s family and activists have demanded an investigation into the alleged VIP angle, with Gautam’s name being raised in connection with the allegations.
Gautam has denied the accusations and initiated defamation proceedings against them.
The Congress has claimed that the appointment was aimed at shielding Gautam, arguing that a governor cannot be subjected to criminal proceedings while holding office.
(PTI News)
