We Are Also Waiting’: Pawan Khera Questions FIR on Kharge’s Complaint in Haldwani Row

Congress leader Pawan Khera on Monday questioned whether an FIR would be registered on party president Mallikarjun Kharge’s complaint over the alleged ‘purification’ ritual conducted at the venue of his rally in Haldwani, Uttarakhand.Khera also criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah for not publicly condemning the incident. “We are also waiting,” Khera said when asked whether an FIR would be filed on Kharge’s complaint.The remarks came a day after Haldwani City Kotwali Police registered an FIR against Rahul Gandhi overhis comments on the same controversy. The case was registered on August 30 following a complaint by Amit Kumar, who identified himself as a member of the Valmiki community.

Police invoked provisions of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, including Sections 3(1)(r) and 3(1)(u), along with Section 196 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. The complainant alleged that Gandhi had wrongly characterised the ritual as an act of untouchability and caste discrimination.Khera contrasted the action against Gandhi with the Congress's demand for action over the original ritual. He asked whether authorities would act on Kharge’s complaint and alleged that the Centre had remained silent on the issue.“Neither the Prime Minister nor the Home Minister opened their mouths,” Khera said, adding that Congress expected them to condemn the alleged purification ritual.

The controversy began after Kharge addressed a Congress rally at Ramlila Ground in Haldwani on August 8. A ‘shuddhikaran yajna’ was subsequently conducted at the venue, prompting Congress leaders to allege that the ritual had caste-related implications because Kharge is a Dalit leader. Kharge later raised the issue in the Rajya Sabha.Rahul Gandhi had also addressed the issue at a press conference on August 29, describing the alleged purification ritual as “another name for untouchability” and demanding that an FIR be registered against those responsible under the SC/ST Act.The BJP has rejected the Congress's interpretation of the incident. BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi said there was no caste angle to the ritual and accused the Congress of attempting to create divisions in Hindu society.Khera also referred to the earlier case involving Sahil Lochab, a 19-year-old student who was allegedly injured by pellet gunfire during protests on July 20. He claimed Rahul Gandhi had previously been forced to stage a protest outside Parliament Street Police Station while demanding registration of an FIR in that matter.The latest dispute has thus developed on two parallel fronts: an FIR has been registered against Rahul Gandhi over his remarks, while Congress leaders are continuing to demand action over the alleged ritual at Kharge’s rally venue. Whether any FIR is registered on Kharge’s complaint remains to be seen.