Several Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, were detained on Friday amid a massive protest outside the party's Delhi headquarters against rising prices, unemployment.
The protests, being held across India, started after Rahul Gandhi’s press conference concluded at the headquarters on Friday.
Rahul Gandhi said that there is no democracy in the country and that all institutions were under the control of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
Democracy is a memory. pic.twitter.com/CnobQwSm44
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) August 5, 2022
“Unemployment is constantly rising, but the Indian government claims that this is not the truth,” Rahul said. “Similarly, inflation is constantly rising, but the finance minister claims this is not true.”
The Opposition leaders were not being allowed to talk about inflation either in Parliament or outside, and that they were being arrested instead, he alleged.
On Friday, the Delhi Police had denied the Congress workers the permission to protest citing prohibitory orders, PTI reported.
The police tried to control the protests outside the Congress headquarters.
Despite the prohibitory orders, Congress MPs started their march from Parliament to Rashtrapati Bhavan. Rahul Gandhi joined the rally too. They were soon detained by the police.
“Again today, Congress MPs denied democratic right to protest against price rise, unemployment and GST,” Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said in a tweet. “Bundled into police vans at Vijay Chowk. It’s clear, only those who are afraid try to instill fear!”
Congress chief Sonia Gandhi led the protest at Parliament. The party MPs wore black as a mark of demonstration.
“Inflation has risen beyond the limit; the government will have to do something about it,” said Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi. “This is why we’re fighting.”
Police were deployed across Delhi on Friday ahead of the Congress’s protest on inflation and unemployment, ANI reported.
The Opposition has been staging protests since the Monsoon Session of Parliament started on July 18, seeking a discussion on inflation. Several MPs have been suspended for protesting in both the Houses of Parliament.
India’s retail inflation has stayed above the Reserve Bank of India’s upper tolerance level of 6% for six straight months till June. The price-rise indicator had touched an eight-year-high of 7.79% in April.
