In high drama at the Lucknow airport on Sunday, a Trinamool delegation, led by former Union Minister Dinesh Trivedi was whisked away from the aircraft and detained for hours at an undisclosed location at the airport. The team had to return by an 8.30 p.m. flight without fulfilling its plan to visit the families of those killed in the protests against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act in Uttar Pradesh.
Mr. Trivedi drew parallels with the treatment of Indians during British rule. He said they were detained without any provocation. The delegation included Rajya Sabha members Nadimul Haque and Abir Ranjan Biswas and Lok Sabha member Pratima Mondal.
The Uttar Pradesh police were waiting on the tarmac for the IndiGo flight carrying the delegation. It surrounded the aircraft the moment it landed around 2 pm. Mr. Trivedi said the policemen got on the aircraft to detain the four leaders. When they resisted and forced their way to the passenger bus, the police off-loaded the other passengers. The bus carrying the leaders and policemen then drove off to an undisclosed location within the airport.
They were confined there without even being allowed to step into the terminal building.
“Are we in 1947 or is it 2019? The BJP government led by Yogi Adityanath are scared of democracy. The U.P. administration has taken lessons from the pages of the British Raj. I am ashamed that our own policemen are behaving in this manner with public representatives,” Mr. Trivedi told The Hindu over phone from the airport.
He said that Sunday’s incident reminded him of his visit with the rest of the Opposition team on August 24 to Srinagar where they were detained at the airport and asked to return immediately.
He said the Trinamool leaders were not in Lucknow to create a law and order situation.
“The way we were manhandled and off-loaded from the aircraft the rest of the passengers would be thinking that we are terrorists,” he added. The delegation has not been told under what law or rule they have been detained.
“All the government has to do is to read the Constituent Assembly debate about what Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan said on the citizenship issue. And forget about the Constitution, this kind of behaviour is against the spirit of Hinduism which is an inclusive religion,” Mr. Trivedi added.
