The Hindu :
Congress president Sonia Gandhi has demanded Home Minister Amit Shah’s resignation over the ongoing violence in northeast Delhi, which has so far left 20 people dead.
Addressing a rare press conference, her first from the Congress headquarters in Delhi, Ms. Gandhi said, “Where was the Home Minister and what was he doing since last Sunday?”
She also hit out at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, saying that he should have gone to the affected areas and held continuous communication with the public to contain the situation.
“Where was the Chief Minister of Delhi and what was he doing since last Sunday?” Ms. Gandhi asked.
She also questioned the evident lack of intelligence inputs ahead of the communal flare-up. “What was the strength of the police force deployed on the night of Sunday when there were clear indications that violence will break out? Why were additional security forces not called immediately when it was clear that the situation was beyond the control of the Delhi police?” she asked.
Ms. Gandhi demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should call for an all-party meeting and brief everyone about the situation and steps taken by his government to contain it. “In the past, even during Vajpayee government, whenever there was a crisis of any kind, the first thing he used to do was call for an all-party meeting. Unfortunately, ever since Modi government has come in, as far as I know no such meeting has been ever called. It’s a sad fact but it’s the truth,” she said.
Earlier, the top leadership of Congress deliberated on the issue at a meeting of its working committee on Wednesday. It was decided to submit a memorandum to the President.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi and top leaders such as Manmohan Singh, A.K. Antony, Ghulam Nabi Azad, P. Chidambaram, Priyanka Gandhi were present during the meeting.
However, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was not present at the meeting as he is abroad, sources said.
The Congress is against the CAA and has urged the government to keep it in abeyance or take it back as it is causing concern among a major section of the country’s population, especially the Muslim community.
Communal violence in northeast Delhi escalated on Tuesday as police struggled to check the rioters who ran amok on streets, burning and looting shops, throwing stones and thrashing people.
