The BJP on Saturday launched a sharp attack on the ongoing protests in Delhi, accusing Rahul Gandhi, the INDIA bloc and the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) of attempting to create unrest and undermine democratic institutions.
BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad said the events of the past few days had demonstrated that Indian democracy had thwarted “attempts to incite anarchy.” He asserted that the country would be governed by Parliament and not by the streets, pointing to the BJP’s electoral victories in Assam, Nandigram and Puducherry. Prasad argued that these results came despite the ongoing protests in Delhi and other parts of the country, accusing the opposition of weaponising street demonstrations following electoral defeats.
BJP national president Nitin Nabin alleged that attempts were being made to destabilise the country and disrupt the peace and harmony of its 1.4 billion people. He accused two groups, one led by Rahul Gandhi and the INDIA bloc and the other involving associates of Arvind Kejriwal and CJP, of engaging in what he described as an “anarchic competition” to create instability.
BJP national spokesperson and MP Sambit Patra said the protests at Jantar Mantar did not represent the mood of the country, claiming that India remained calm and was progressing under the BJP’s governance. He accused what he termed “anarchist forces” of attempting to create unrest in the national capital over the past few days.
Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk on Saturday called the situation in India an “undeclared emergency” as the national capital was turned into a fortress with Delhi Police’s sweeping crackdown in the wake of protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the alleged irregularities in the election process.
Wangchuk, who had appealed for unity and peace ahead of the protest, said he would consider an “Anshan fast” or a “padyatra” march if those arrested were not released by Sunday. Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) leaders Abhijeet Dipke, Saurav Das, Ashutosh Ranka, CPI(ML) Liberation General Secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, AISA president Neha Bora, activists Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan and YouTuber Dhruv Rathee, among others, were detained by the police.