National Herald case: Vindicated by court’s refusal to entertain ED chargesheet, Congress workers protest in Lucknow

Congress workers on Wednesday held a protest in Lucknow after a Delhi court refused to take cognisance of the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) chargesheet against senior party leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and five others in the National Herald case.

The party termed the court’s decision a major victory and accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of misusing Central agencies to target political opponents.

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Hundreds of Congress workers marched from the party’s state headquarters to the BJP office raising slogans. However, police stopped the protesters using a five-layer barricading arrangement.

During the protest, a worker alleged that police personnel manhandled protesters and tore his clothes during the scuffle, calling the behaviour “shameful in a democracy.”

State Congress president Ajay Rai said the court’s decision exposed the BJP government’s alleged misuse of the ED. “For a long time, the BJP government has been misusing the ED. Today’s outcome proves that the chargesheet had no merit and was only meant to defame our leaders,” he said.

Former Congress MLC Deepak Singh accused the BJP of running a government based on injustice and oppression. “We will fight against this. There is a conspiracy to erase Mahatma Gandhi’s name from India’s history, but Congress will not allow this. We will fight from the streets to Parliament, and we are ready to go to jail,” he said.

Another Congress leader said the BJP has been continuously trying to insult the party, whether through ED cases or issues like MGNREGA. “The relief given by the court to senior leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi is a lesson for the BJP. It shows that democracy is still alive in this country and our faith in the Constitution has grown stronger,” he said.

The Congress leaders further said that attempts to tarnish the party’s image through the National Herald case had failed, claiming the issue was never valid. They also accused the saffron party of winning elections through conspiracies and alleged vote manipulation, while failing to damage the image of Congress leaders.

Addressing the protesters, Ajay Rai reiterated that the court’s decision had exposed the BJP’s intentions. “The judiciary has rejected the allegations, proving they were made only to defame us. Our leaders’ image has emerged even stronger before the country and the world,” he said.