Uttarakhand Congress to file FIRs across districts over "purification" ritual row

Dehradun (Uttarakhand) [India], August 30 (ANI): The Uttarakhand Pradesh Congress Committee will lodge FIRs at multiple locations across all districts of the state on Monday over the "purification" carried out at Haldwani's Ramlila Ground after Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge's rally on August 8, following the decision and directions of the AICC.
The Congress will also hold a major protest in the state capital, Dehradun, on September 7 over the Kharge issue. Senior party leaders, including Uttarakhand Congress in-charge Kumari Selja, are expected to participate in the protest.
Leader of Opposition in the Uttarakhand Assembly, Yashpal Arya, has confirmed these programmes.
Notably, the issue has gained momentum after a "purification" ritual was reportedly carried out at the Ramlila Ground in Haldwani following Kharge's rally on August 8.
The state Congress has since been continuously demanding the registration of FIRs and action against those responsible for carrying out the purification.
The controversy erupted after Mallikarjun Kharge in the Rajya Sabha alleged that a purification ritual had been carried out at the Haldwani venue following his August 8 Congress rally, which was organised as part of the party's preparations for the 2027 Uttarakhand Assembly elections.
After the event, Kharge demanded legal action in an X post.
Earlier on Saturday, leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, demanded an immediate registration of an FIR under the SC/ST Act against those who allegedly carried out a 'shuddhikaran' (purification) ritual in Uttarakhand following Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge's visit.
"This act violates the SC/ST Act. Performing a 'purification' ritual is a crime. Yet, no action has been taken. Therefore, we demand that an FIR be registered immediately against those who carried out this purification ritual in Uttarakhand," Gandhi said.
However, BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi, during a press conference in the national capital, claimed there was "no caste angle" in the video related to the Uttarakhand 'shuddhikaran' (purification) controversy. He accused the Congress of repeatedly raising caste and other similar issues to create divisions in Hindu society. (ANI)