Himachal govt shielding those who maligned India's global image at AI Summit: Rajiv Bindal

Shimla, Feb 26 (PTI) Himachal Pradesh BJP president Rajiv Bindal on Thursday accused the state government of shielding those accused of maligning India's global image at the AI Impact Summit in Delhi, calling it “unprecedented” and “deeply disturbing”.

On February 20, a group of Indian Youth Congress (IYC) workers staged a dramatic protest inside Hall No. 5 of the summit venue in Delhi by removing their shirts to reveal T-shirts printed with anti-government slogans, before being whisked away by security personnel.

On Wednesday, a high-voltage drama unfolded in Shimla after a team of Delhi Police arrested three IYC workers from a hotel in Rohru near the Himachal capital, for their alleged involvement in the protest.

The arrests sparked a tense standoff between the police forces of Delhi and Himachal, which ended on Thursday morning, when the team from Delhi was finally cleared to head back to the national capital with the accused trio.

The Delhi Police team was "detained" for about five hours even after procuring a transit remand from the ACJM concerned in Shimla.

Addressing a press conference in Una on the fast-paced developments, Bindal said that the state government created a confrontation between the two police forces by registering an FIR against the team from Delhi that came to execute lawful arrests.

“When a state government pits one police force against another for political interests, it reflects a dangerous breakdown of constitutional order," Bindal said.

Launching a sharp attack on the Congress government in Himachal for “shielding those accused of maligning India's global image at the AI Impact Summit”, Bindal said this was “nothing short of anarchy”.

“Delhi Police arrived in the state as part of a legal process following all due procedures, including court orders. However, Himachal Pradesh Police filed a case of abduction against their counterparts from Delhi and obstructed their work, leading to a high-voltage standoff,” the BJP leader alleged.

In a statement, BJP MLA from Naina Devi, Randhir Sharma, said stopping Delhi Police in their work was a violation of the federal structure and the Constitution.

He also alleged that the state government resorted to hooliganism to protect Rahul Gandhi's goons, calling it the “height of lawlessness”.

BJP spokesperson and former MLA Rajendra Rana said that criminals were receiving VIP treatment in Himachal, and accused Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu of flouting the law.

“The state's reputation is at stake due to Sukhu’s childish, immature and arrogant work style. But the public is watching, and they will answer in due time,” he added. PTI BPL ARI ARI