BJP says ‘no caste angle’ in Haldwani incident accuses Rahul Gandhi of playing divisive politics

Rahul Gandhi. File | Photo credit: PTI

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday (29 Aug 2026) cited the testimony of two Scheduled Caste eyewitnesses who claimed to have exposed Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi’s account of the alleged incident in Haldwani, Uttarakhand, earlier this month.

The attack came after Mr Gandhi targeted the party and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), alleging that a “purification” ceremony had been held at the venue of a rally addressed by Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge in Haldwani. Mr. Gandhi also sought a First Information Report (FIR) into the incident.

In a joint press conference, BJP leaders Guru Prakash Paswan and Sudhanshu Trivedi argued that the 20-day delay in raising the matter and seeking an FIR indicated that there was no real issue or legal basis. They said the Congress was using the matter as a “political opportunity” to promote its policy of creating “social rifts”.

They played videos of two eyewitnesses who are members of an organization that cleaned the stage and organized a ‘havan’ at the venue, which is the Ramlila venue. They rejected the charge of caste discrimination.

Referring to the eyewitnesses, Mr. Trivedi suggested that a counter-FIR could potentially be filed without specifying against whom.

Mr Paswan accused Mr Gandhi of constantly supporting “forces that are breaking society” and trying to create a “narrative based on lies”, describing him and the Congress as “anti-Dalit” and “neo-feudal”. He said the party and its leaders had mistreated Mr. Kharge, former Puducherry Chief Minister V. Narayanasamy and senior Haryana Congress leader Kumari Selja, among others.

“History is witness to the way Babasaheb Ambedkar and Babu Jagjivan Ram were treated. Babu Jagjivan Ram had to quit the Congress and the country saw for the first time a person from the Dalit community becoming the Deputy Prime Minister in a government formed by the Bharatiya Jana Sangh,” Mr. Paswan said. He alleged that Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara had publicly said that he was not made Chief Minister because he was a Dalit.

“Today your government is in many states. How many SC, ST and OBC chief ministers are there?” he asked, listing leaders from the Scheduled Tribe (ST) and Scheduled Caste (SC) communities who held important positions under BJP-led governments, including President Droupadi Murma, Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, besides several chief ministers and deputy chief ministers.

“Who ensured that Babasaheb Ambedkar did not win the elections? From Babu Jagjivan Ram to Babasaheb Ambedkar, Kanshi Ram and Sitaram Kesri, what treatment were given to them? And they ask us about our commitment… the history of Congress is a history of neo-feudalism, extreme casteism and anti-Paswandalites.”

Mr Trivedi alleged that Mr Gandhi and the Congress were repeatedly highlighting various issues of identity, including gender, region, state, language and caste, with what he described as the underlying agenda of making “Hindus fight among themselves”. He also alleged that the Congress has seen neglect or mistreatment of Dalits.

The BJP leader cited incidents of violence against Dalits in Rajasthan and Karnataka under Congress rule to argue that the party had failed to protect them.

Published – 29 Aug 2026 22:12 IST