Several members of Bhartiya Janta Party were detained by Rajasthan Police on Saturday in Jaipur after the party organized a major demonstration against the Congress government protesting against the arrest of widows of martyrs of the 2019 Pulwama terror attack. The BJP leaders were marching towards CM Ashok Gehlot’s residence as part of their protest when they were detained by police.
Rajendra Rathore, the deputy leader of the opposition (LoP) in the legislative assembly, Satish Poonia, state BJP chief, as well as a few other members and office bearers of the party have been taken into custody by the police.
Rathore declared that ‘we started the protest today and we will keep going’. He added that the state government’s actions were an affront to democracy and that we will continue our protests against them throughout the entire state.
Satish Poonia proclaimed that their protest is in response to the insults directed at the party leaders and the wives of the Pulwama martyrs. He announced that they will organize a ‘Jana Aakrosh’ campaign in the state where the party will bring up issues like corruption and swindling of farmer loans.
The BJP called for a protest after its Rajya Sabha Member Kirodi Lal Meena got into an altercation with the police while he was on his way to meet the widows of the three Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) jawans, yesterday.
The senior BJP leader was rushed to Sawai Man Singh (SMS) hospital in Jaipur after he reportedly sustained injuries. The party has been at the forefront of the protest.
The widows were taken into custody early on Friday morning while they were protesting outside the house of Deputy Chief Minister of Rajasthan, Sachin Pilot. The police sent them back to their towns.
The state government recently come under fire for assaulting the protesting widows when a video of the violence went viral on social media. Rekha Sharma, the chairman of the National Commission for Women (NCW), wrote to Umesh Mishra, the director general of police (DGP) for Rajasthan, asking that he personally look into the matter.
The widows of soldiers who lost their lives in the Pulwama terror attack in 2019 are protesting against the non-fulfillment of promises made to them by the Rajasthan government. The women have been protesting since February 28 and launched an indefinite hunger strike demanding a change in rules so that their relatives and not just children can get government jobs on compassionate grounds.