New Delhi: Gujarat MLA Jignesh Mevani on Monday put forth three challenges for the BJP-led government, failing which he said Congress would launch a state bandh on June 1.
The Congress-backed Independent MLA from Gujarat's Vadgam addressed the media after he was granted bail in a case related to alleged "assault" of a woman police officer.
Talking about police inaction in serious matters, he cited cases of drug seizure at Gujarat's Mundra Airport, rape allegation against a Gujarat Minister, and hate speech in the Dharma Sansad case and said no serious inquiry was launched in these instances.
"Godse devotees sitting in PMO (PMO mein baithe Godse ke bhakt) filed serious FIRs against me over a tweet," Jignesh Mewani said at a press conference on Monday.
Noting the distance that Assam police travelled to arrest him from Gujarat, he alleged that it was done in a pre-planned manner.
He commented that Assam police insulted the state of Gujarat by arresting a sitting MLA, which he further claimed was done without informing the state assembly speaker in contradiction to protocol.
The Vadgam MLA also talked about the case of alleged "assault" of a woman police officer.
"Ye hai 56 inch ki kayarta, Ye hai 56 inch ki buzdili (This is the 56-inch cowardice)," he said in reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, remarking that the officials used a woman to lodge a "fake case" against a sitting MLA.
Mevani quoted the Assam court's bail order asking the state police to reform itself.
The Dalit leader also accused PM Narendra Modi of having a "caste bias."
Following his accusations against PM Modi and BJP, Mevani challenged the Gujarat government to withdraw cases registered against minority community members in his constituency, the way cases against the Patidar community were taken back following their protests.
He called for an investigation in cases of exam paper leaks in Gujarat and also sought for Adani Group chairperson Gautam Adani to be interrogated over the seizure of drugs at Mundra Airport last year.
Failing this, he said that Gujarat Congress will launch a bandh on June 1 to protest against the state government.
He followed his call by quoting Allu Arjun starrer 'Pushpa: The Rise', "Flower nahi, fire hain. Jhukega nahi. (I am fire, I won't bow down.)"
"It's my challenge to you Prime Minister of India," he added.
Recent Cases Against Jignesh Mevani
Jignesh Mevani was recently arrested twice by Assam police, the first one being in a case that was filed against him for tweeting that Prime Minister Narendra Modi "considered Godse as God".
He was arrested for a second time soon after a court in Kokrajhar granted him bail in the matter. The second arrest was done in the case involving alleged misbehaviour with a woman police officer.
The alleged incident took place when the female Police officer was escorting Mevani from Guwahati airport to Kokrajhar along with Additional Superintendent of Police Surjeet Singh Panesar and another official in a government vehicle on April 21.
Jignesh was granted bail on a Personal Recognisance (PR) bond of Rs 1,000 in the case filed at the Barpeta Road police station.
According to news agency PTI, Barpeta District and Sessions judge Aparesh Chakraborty noted that the high court may consider directing the Assam Police to reform itself to "prevent registration of false FIRs like the present case and the police personnel firing and killing or injuring accused which has become a routine phenomenon in the state".
Judge Aparesh Chakraborty observed that the intent to outrage the modesty of the woman police officer in presence of two other police officials cannot be held against the accused while he was in their custody and nobody else had seen the incident.