The Congress on Monday demanded a court-monitored judicial probe into the Delhi riots and again pressed for the immediate resignation of Union Home Minister Amit Shah over the Delhi police’s inaction to control the riots.
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The party also demanded that cases should be registered against BJP leaders for making inflammatory speeches and inciting violence.
The Congress fact-finding committee, set up by party chief Sonia Gandhi, earlier in the day submitted a report on the violence in which it pointed out the alleged failure of the Centre and the Delhi governments.
The committee included Mukul Wasnik, Tariq Anwar, Sushmita Dev, Shaktisinh Gohil and Kumari Selja.
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Addressing a joint press conference, Mr. Wasnik said it seems that the Modi government has failed to follow the “Raj Dharma” and protect the lives of Delhi citizens.
He said the judicial inquiry should be monitored by a High Court or Supreme Court judge to ascertain what led to the violence and fix responsibility of police officers who are guilty of dereliction of duty.
“We feel that Amit Shah as the Union Home Minister did not take enough measures to stop the violence in Delhi. We demand that Amit Shah resign immediately. We also demand that FIRs and cases be registered immediately against those BJP leaders who made inflammatory speeches and legal action against them,” Mr. Wasnik said.
The Congress also targeted Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) for failing to instil confidence among the people and ensure their safety.
The violence coinciding with U.S. President Donald Trump’s visit had tarnished India’s reputation, it said.
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Congress Delhi in-charge Shaktisinh Gohil alleged that the violence spread as both the BJP and the AAP played politics and demanded compensation to the the victims of violence.
Ms. Dev said their team had only visited the affected areas to ascertain the facts and not to investigate.
“It is a shame that the Chief Minister of Delhi should do nothing. Kejriwal simply washed his hands off despite the civil administration being under him. He sat only on Twitter and watched the violence spread across Delhi,” Ms. Dev said
The team visited the riot-affected areas in northeast Delhi and met the victims and their families, both in hospitals and in their homes.
