Rahul Gandhi brings high voltage political drama in Hathras, justice for victim takes a backseat

Rahul Gandhi, the scion of the Gandhi family, who was not seen in the parliament in the crucial Monsoon session, has appeared on ground after almost six months, that too, to politicize an alleged rape case.

Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi went to Hathras with many other Congress leaders despite the fact that the Epidemic disease act is in force throughout the country including Uttar Pradesh. Given the Coronavirus pandemic, mass gatherings are not allowed in any part of the country, but Rahul Gandhi reached to Hathras district with thousands of Congress workers in order to build political capital around the alleged rape of a 20-year-old girl.

The leader of the Congress party was not seen anywhere except social media in the last six months including in the parliament session, where he has the opportunity to take on the government on important matters. Had he spoken on the crucial bills, irrespective of in support or in opposition, his credibility as a serious leader who is interested in policymaking and is willing to bring positive change in the country, could have been established. But, he chose to skip the parliament session in which more than 20 bills were passed. And now, he is on the ground with a large number of Congress workers amid the Coronavirus disease, to politicize an alleged rape.

The rape cases in Rajasthan have got little to no media coverage because it is a Congress state and because the caste of the victim and perpetrator doesn’t suit their political agenda.

Moreover, The Balrampur gang-rape incident where a 22-year-old woman has been raped by two men named Shahid and Sahil has seemingly been dropped in the cold-storage by Rahul Gandhi because it does not suit his agenda. According to the police report, she was raped in the backroom of a grocery store in the Gaisari village. Her sandals were found outside the room. The owner of the shop was allegedly the one who planned the crime.

In Uttar Pradesh, the government has registered FIR against Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi under the Epidemic disease act. Leading a mass gathering in Hathras, Rahul Gandhi was pretending that he is not aware of which laws he has violated. “Why are you arresting me? What are the grounds for the arrest? What law am I violating,” Rahul Gandhi said yesterday afternoon during the heated exchange with policemen, who said that they were charging him with “Section 188” – a law on defying official orders.

However, Rahul Gandhi is getting all the media attention that he wanted, by defying the official orders and leading a mass gathering amid Coronavirus. Now, playing the victim card in a style unique to him, he tweeted, “I won’t be afraid of anyone in the world. I won’t bow down to any sort of injustice. I will defeat lies with the power of truth and will face all the struggles while fighting untruth… Heartiest greetings on Gandhi Jayanti,” in Hindi, invoking Mahatma Gandhi on his 151st birth anniversary.

The Hathras case will, of course, need a proper and fair investigation as the allegations made are serious. It needs to be examined if there were contradictory claims also, if the allegations of the family being kept away are true, then it also constitutes a gross violation of the fundamental rights of the victim, as well as her family. But what the liberal media and political parties have done in the wake of this case is outrightly disgusting. Using the death of a gang-rape victim and her caste to create even more deep fissures in the society—all to gain some political edge, the opposition continues to hit a new low and so does the liberal media which proclaims itself as a champion of women’s rights but in hindsight, is a vulture, only looking to boost its TRPs through the caste angle.