Opposition Bloc Rallies in Ranchi, Demands Release of Kejriwal and Soren
NEW DELHI: In a major show of strength in Ranchi, the I.N.D.I.A. bloc came out in full force on Sunday. Two empty chairs -- one each for jailed Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and former Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren -- were kept on the stage. The wives of these two leaders, Sunita Kejriwal and Kalpana Soren, addressed the rally amid slogans “Jail ka tala tutega, Hemant Soren chutega” (The jail locks will be broken, Hemant Soren will be released) and “Jharkhand Jhukega Nahi” (Jharkhand will not bow down).
Speaking at the rally, Kalpana Soren said, “Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and my husband Hemant Soren were jailed just before the elections by forces that were hatching conspiracies against their governments.”
Reading out her husband’s message, she said, “Central agencies such as the ED and CBI are being misused to suppress the Opposition’s voice, but the BJP and such forces will be driven out from Jharkhand.” Urging the people to show the “exit doors” to the BJP, she claimed that if the party wins the ongoing elections it would be a “big threat” to tribals.
Asserting that the Opposition I.N.D.I.A. bloc will fight against the “dictatorship” of the BJP and win, Sunita Kejriwal said, “They want to kill my husband Arvind Kejriwal. His food is under camera observation; he is denied insulin. My husband is a sugar patient who has been on insulin for 12 years; he needs 50 units of insulin daily”.
She claimed that her husband was jailed for working for the people “Jan Seva” and no charges could be proved against him. “We will fight against dictatorship and win. The gates of jail will break and Arvind Kejriwal and Hemant Soren will come out,” she said.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, alleging that he insulted President Droupadi Murmu and the tribal community by not inviting her to the Ram Mandir’s consecration and the inauguration of the Parliament building. “The BJP considers tribals as untouchables,” the Congress leader alleged, and warned that it will be reduced to 150 to 180 seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
A total of 28 political parties attended the rally. JMM supremo Shibu Soren, National Conference president Farooq Abdullah, RJD leader and former Bihar deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and others attended the rally in a mega show of strength for the alliance.
The workers assembled for the “Ulgulan Nyay Maharally” braving the scorching heat in the Jharkhand capital’s as temperature was hovering around 40 degrees Celsius.
