Delhi Police cracks down on Trinamool team holding dharna outside ECI office

Kolkata: A 10-member delegation of Trinamool Congress (TMC) which visited the Election Commission of India (ECI) headquarters in New Delhi on Monday, demanding the transfer of the newly appointed chief of National Investigation Agency (NIA) Sadanand Date and the agency’s officer Dhan Ram Singh, was later detained, and allegedly manhandled by the Delhi Police during their sit-in protest outside the building.

The party posted on its official X handle: “In a show of brute strength, HM@AmitShah’s Delhi Police cracked down on our 10-member delegation who were peacefully protesting outside Nirvachan Sadan. Our female MPs were pushed, shoved, and dragged on the ground. Our Rajya Sabha MP Dola Sen sustained a leg injury in the process. They’re now being whisked away in a police van like common criminals. Why? Because they dared to oppose BJP’s misuse of Central Investigative Agencies. It’s official: INDIA HAS CEASED TO BE A DEMOCRATIC NATION!”

Alleging that the BJP has “complete control” over the central probe agency, the TMC delegation submitted a letter to EC reiterating its allegation that the BJP leader Jitendra Tiwari met the NIA officer Dhan Ram Singh at the latter’s residence in New Town on March 26. Attaching a photocopy of what it claimed was the visitors book, the delegation alleged it proved that Tiwari visited Singh’s flat.

The delegation also alleged that Tiwari entered the flat with a packet in his hands but left empty-handed. It alleged there is reason to believe that the packet contained a list of names of TMC’s booth level workers and local leaders “who were meant to be targeted and/or arrested by the NIA under written instructions from BJP”. TMC alleged “the packet contained monetary consideration for the NIA officer in exchange for him carrying out BJP’s illegal biddings”. The delegation asserted that video footage showing Tiwari entering and leaving the flat be collected by the EC. Alleging that a sequence of events leading to the NIA action in Bengal’s Bhupatinagar proved an “unholy nexus” between the BJP and the NIA, the delegation demanded transfer of the newly appointed NIA chief Sadanand Date and the agency’s officer Dhan Ram Singh.

TMC said that Date, who was appointed by the Centre on March 26, was in close association with BJP leaders during his service days in Maharashtra. It pointed out that on the same day, the BJP leader Tiwari met the NIA officer Singh at the latter’s residence. On the next day (March 27) NIA issued notices to various TMC members. On March 28, although their party members supposedly informed the NIA of their engagements in prior political commitments and were willing to attend NIA’s office post elections, the central agency re-issued notices directing their physical attendance on March 30. It said that in the meantime its members filed a criminal revisional application challenging the notices and investigations (pending before the Calcutta High Court) and the same was conveyed to NIA. However, the NIA “illegally” raided multiple residences of Trinamool workers on the intervening night of April 5 and 6. During such raids, doors were broken down and women of the residences were allegedly manhandled. The NIA also arrested TMC workers. “An FIR has already been registered at the local police station against the high-handedness of the NIA officers who disrobed the dignity of women with absolute impunity,” the letter read. TMC alleged that NIA made false claims that such women whose homes were raided, were the ones that attacked the NIA. It told the EC that when law and order is a State subject the NIA should have informed the local police before conducting such raids. “Even though the raids were conducted at about 03:30 AM, the NIA informed the local police only at about 05:00 AM. This shows the deliberate intention of the NIA to terrorize the TMC members in the dead of night to boost the morale of the BJP workers,” the letter read.