Mobocracy horrifying hallmark of our times: Cong on lynching of Dalit man in Raebareli
New Delhi (PTI): The Congress on Tuesday condemned the killing of a Dalit man in Raebareli as murder of humanity and the Constitution, and said it poses a serious question mark on collective morality as violence cannot be a hallmark of any civilised society.
In a joint statement, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi alleged that mob lynching, bulldozer injustice, and mobocracy have become a "horrifying hallmark of our times".
A 40-year-old Dalit man identified as Hariom was allegedly lynched by villagers who mistook him for a thief during a night vigil amid rumours that a gang was using drones for surveillance to mark houses for robberies, police said on Monday.
In a post on X in Hindi, Gandhi said the brutal murder of Hariom is not just the murder of one person but murder of humanity, the Constitution, justice.
"Today in India, Dalits, tribals, Muslims, backward classes, and the poor—everyone whose voice is weak, whose share is being snatched away, and whose life is considered cheap—is being targeted," he said.
"Hate, violence, and mobocracy have the patronage of power in this country—where bulldozers have replaced the Constitution, and fear has replaced justice," he said.
Expressing solidarity with Hariom's family, the former Congress president said "they will surely get justice. India's future rests on equality and humanity, and this country will be governed by the Constitution, not the whims of the mob".
While sharing the joint statement, Kharge said in a post on X, "The Congress Party strongly condemns the brutal and cruel murder of Dalit youth Hariom Valmiki in Rae Bareli".
In their joint statement, the Congress leaders said our country has one Constitution that recognises every human being as equal and there is a law that gives equal status to the security, rights, and expression of every citizen.
"What happened in Rae Bareli is a grave offense against the Constitution of this country. It is a crime against the Dalit community and a stain on this country and society.
"The number of crimes against Dalits, minorities, and the poor in the country has increased beyond limits. This violence is most prevalent against those who are deprived, Bahujan, and those who have neither adequate participation nor representation," they said.
Whether it is crimes against women in Hathras and Unnao, the murder of Hariom in Rae Bareli, or, more recently, the institutionalised murder of Rohit Vemula, the inhumane incident of a leader urinating on a tribal youth in Madhya Pradesh, the brutal beating of Dalits in Odisha and Madhya Pradesh, or the murders of Pehlu Khan in Haryana and Akhlaq in Uttar Pradesh, each incident reflects the growing insensitivity of our society, administration, and ruling powers, they also said.
Alleging that since 2014, trends like mob lynching, bulldozer injustice, and mobocracy have become a horrifying hallmark of our times, Kharge and Gandhi said, "Violence cannot be a hallmark of any civilized society, therefore, what happened to Hariom poses a serious question mark on our collective morality."
The India of Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar's dreams and the India of Mahatma Gandhi's "Vaishnav Jan" is an India of social justice, equality, and compassion, in which such crimes have no place, they said, adding that humanity is the only way.
"The Congress Party is committed to the empowerment of the marginalised and vulnerable sections of society. We call upon citizens to unite against this injustice. This fight must continue until the rights and dignity of life of every Indian are fully protected," the statement said.
Five people have been arrested in the case and three police personnel have been suspended for alleged negligence, they said, adding the accused come from different social backgrounds, including Dalits and other backward castes. Police appealed to residents not to spread any caste-related rumours about the incident.
Uttar Pradesh Congress president Ajay Rai on Monday visited Hariom's family and claimed that the victim was beaten up when he took Rahul Gandhi's name. He alleged that "jungle raj" was prevailing in the state. Gandhi spoke to the victim's brother on phone and assured him of all support.
On Wednesday night, Hariom was walking to his in-laws' house in the New Basti area of Unchahar town to meet his wife Pinky and his daughter Ananya when some villagers became suspicious of his movement near the Jamunapur crossing and started questioning him, police said.
When he failed to respond to their queries, the villagers brutally thrashed him, suspecting him of being a thief, they said.
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Ex-PM Devegowda warns opposition of electoral losses if they continue to allege 'vote chori'
New Delhi (PTI): Former Prime Minister H D Devegowda on Monday said the Opposition parties would "suffer" if they continue to raise allegations of "vote chori" and create suspicion in the minds of voters by blaming Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government.
Participating in a discussion on election reforms in the Rajya Sabha, he criticised the Opposition for making a mockery about the Prime Minister "in the streets and on the public platform".
"This (India) is a very big country. A large country. Congress may be in three states. Remember my friends please, by using the words 'vote chori' you are going to suffer in the coming days. You are not going to win the battle," Devegowda said, referring to the Opposition members.
He asked what the Opposition is going to earn by "blaming Narendra Modi's leadership and creating a suspicion in the mind of the voters" through the claims of "vote chori".
"What has happened to their minds? Let them rectify," Devegowda said.
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The former prime minister said that during his over seven decades of public life, he has never raised such issues of vote theft despite facing defeat in elections.
He also cited a letter written by the then Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru regarding inclusion of "18,000 votes" (voters) in Kerala.
"Why I am telling this (because) during the Nehru period also, there were certain lapses in the electoral system," said Devegowda, who was the prime minister between June 1, 1996 and April 21, 1997.
He said that the Congress party faced defeat in the recent Bihar elections despite raising the issues of mistakes in the electoral rolls.
"What happened after that even after so much review (of voters list). Think (for) yourself! You got six MLAs," the senior Janata Dal (Secular) leader said.
Devegowda questioned the Opposition as to why they want to make allegations against the prime minister on the issue of the voters list?
"Election Commission is there. Supreme Court is there. The Election Commission has given direction to all the state units to rectify all these things," he said.
Devegowda said people of the country have full confidence in Narendra Modi's government and it will come back to power after the next Lok Sabha elections as well.
K R Suresh Reddy, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) party's Rajya Sabha member from Telangana, said that electoral reforms are the backbone for a healthy democracy.
He said a large and diverse nation like Indi needs clean electoral rolls.
Asserting that strict re-verification should not become a mechanism for exclusion, Reddy said no eligible voter should lose their right to vote simply because accessing paperwork is difficult.
He said while the concern definitely is on the voters' exclusion, "we should also be equally concerned about the percentage of voting."
"What is happening in voting today? Once the election ends, the drama begins. The biggest challenge that the Indian democracy has been facing in spite of two major Constitutional amendments has been the anti-defection. Anti-defection is the name of the game today, especially in smaller states, especially where the legislatures are small in number," Reddy said.
The senior BRS leader suggested creation of a parliamentary committee "which would constantly look into the defection" and "ways and means to cutting that".
AIADMK's M Thambidurai raised the issues related to election campaigning.
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"Election campaigns are one of the important election processes. In that, political parties must be given the proper chance to campaign," he said and cited problems faced by his party in Tamil Nadu in this regard.
Thambidurai said political parties were facing hardships in Tamil Nadu to conduct public meetings and to express their views to the public.
YSRCP's Yerram Venkata Subba Reddy stressed on bringing electoral reforms at both the state and national levels.
He also suggested replacing Electronic Voting Machines with paper ballots in all future elections.
"EVM may be efficient but can't be trusted. Paper ballot may not be efficient but can be trusted. You need trust in democracy," Reddy added.
