The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday hit out at the Congress after slogans were allegedly raised in favour of Maoist leader Madvi Hidma during the air pollution protest at India Gate on Sunday, with party's national spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi saying that the "pollution of Marx and Mao" is denser in their brains.
Speaking at a press conference in Delhi, the Rajya Sabha MP pointed out that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has already warned that Congress has become the Muslim League Maoist party, adding that the grand old party is dreaming to come to power with support of 'Kathmullas', which Trivedi said was extremely 'dangerous'.
"Some people reached India Gate with a mask on their faces that they are there to protest against the pollution. The masks were off as soon as they reached there, and the real face was out, and they started raising slogans in support of a slain Naxal commander," Trivedi was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
"The PM has said that the Congress has become the Muslim League-Maoist... More than the air pollution, the pollution of Marx and Mao is denser in their brains," he added.
Air pollution protest in Delhi and slogans supporting Maoist leader
A protest was organised at the India Gate on Sunday over the deteriorating air quality index (AQI) in the national capital. The protesters had blocked the C-Hexagon, forcing the police to intervene. But some of the agitators assaulted police personnel and allegedly used 'pepper spray' on them, after which 15 were arrested by the officials.
According to the police, the agitators even raised slogans in support of Maoist leader Madvi Hidma. The police said several of its personnel were injured in the scuffle on Sunday, who were rushed to the Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital for treatment, adding that officials are scanning the CCTV footage.
"India Gate is not a designated protest site. The protesters were asked to leave. Jantar Mantar is the designated protest site, and anyone can demonstrate there after obtaining permission," news agency PTI quoted an official as saying. "The situation then turned into a scuffle, and some protesters used pepper spray on our personnel, which is unusual and rare."
