INDIA bloc MPs protest against ‘misuse’ of ED, CBI against Opposition leaders

Scores of MPs from INDIA Opposition bloc staged a noisy protest in parliament premises on Monday (July 1) against what they said was the misuse of probe agencies by the government to target Opposition leaders.

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and leaders of allied parties including the Trinamool Congress as well as the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) took part in the demonstration.

ED, CBI targeted

The leaders carried placards in English and Hindi denouncing the government’s selective use of the Enforcement Directorate and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against opposition leaders.

Two of the banners read "Stop misusing agencies to silence Opposition" and "BJP mein jao, bhrashtachar ka licence pao (Join the BJP, get a licence to be corrupt)".

Posters of Kejriwal

Some AAP MPs displayed posters of Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal standing behind the bars.

The protest comes days after a court in New Delhi sent Kejriwal to judicial custody till July 12 in a corruption case related to the alleged excise scam. He was formally arrested by the CBI last week.

Previously, he was arrested by the ED in a money-laundering case linked to the policy. He was granted bail by a trial court that was stayed by the Delhi High Court.

Also, former Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren was released on Friday after the state high court granted him bail in a money laundering case, observing that he was not guilty and there was no likelihood of the petitioner committing an offence on bail.