Mumbai Police Utilize Baton Charge Against BJP Youth Activists Who Defaced Congress Headquarters
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Mumbai, Dec 19 (NationPress) The Mumbai Police had to resort to a baton charge on members of the Bhartiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) who forcefully entered the Congress office located at Azad Maidan in south Mumbai and caused extensive vandalism on Thursday, as per officials.
Furious BJYM activists - the youth wing of the Bharatiya Janata Party - shouted slogans against the Congress party, alleging that Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi had disrespected Dr. B. R. Ambedkar.
Under the leadership of BJYM Mumbai chief Tajinder Tiwana, they arrived at the Congress office, where they threw stones at images of Rahul Gandhi and other leaders, hurled chairs, and overturned furniture, creating chaos.
While chanting slogans, they also vandalized large posters of Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, and Priyanka Gandhi by splashing black paint on them and tearing down at least one banner.
In response, a team from the Mumbai Police, which was stationed outside the party office, attempted to quell the violence by employing a baton charge to disperse the unruly BJYM members, resulting in at least half a dozen activists facing severe blows.
A female Congress office bearer reported that when she tried to intervene, some BJYM members allegedly attempted to touch her, accusing them of “attacking those defending the Constitution and Democracy.”
She informed the media that the BJYM's actions were cowardly, describing how they sneaked in and launched a surprise attack, while also accusing the police of being complicit in the incident.
Prominent Congress leaders, including state President Nana F. Patole, Working President M. Arif Naseem Khan, former Leader of Opposition Vijay Wadettiwar, former Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan, MP Varsha Gaikwad, former Minister Balasaheb Thorat, former state chief Manikrao Thakare, and former Indian Youth Congress President Srinivas BV, along with MPs and MLAs, condemned the assault.
They labeled the attacks as ‘BJP-sponsored state terrorism’ and referred to the BJYM members as ‘goons’ unleashed upon those who uphold the ideals of Dr. Ambedkar and the Constitution.
The leaders emphasized that Rahul Gandhi, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Priyanka Gandhi, and other central figures have faced persistent targeting by the BJP, particularly following remarks by Union Home Minister Amit Shah concerning Dr. Ambedkar a few days prior.
Earlier that same day, the Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), comprised of Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT), and Nationalist Congress Party (SP), conducted a protest march from Constitution Square to Vidhan Bhavan in Nagpur, where the Winter Session of the Maharashtra Legislature is currently in progress.
The demonstrators demanded an apology from HM Shah, while SS (UBT) President Uddhav Thackeray and others called for Prime Minister Narendra Modi to dismiss the Home Minister.
