Protesting Congress, AAP leaders detained; Govt says implementing policy

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, November 2

Suicide by an Army veteran, Ram Kishan Grewal (70), over One Rank, One Pension (OROP) today turned into a massive political showdown with the Congress and AAP accusing the Narendra Modi government of betraying soldiers on its promise. The BJP hit back, accusing them of doing “politics over deaths”.The Delhi Police detained Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi and Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, while they restricted Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s movement at a hospital where they had gone to meet the family members of the deceased. Home Minister Rajnath Singh defended the police action, saying: “Whatever has to be done for risk reduction, the Delhi Police will do.” He said the OROP issue had been resolved and “we are implementing it”.Even the Delhi Police officially justified the action of detaining leaders, saying they would not allow anyone to disturb law and order. There is a feeling among officials in the defence establishment that the suicide by the former Army man was the result of unpaid OROP arrears. Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar tweeted the list of OROP beneficiaries.Refuting BJP’s allegation of the Congress politicising the issue, former Defence Minister AK Antony said: “Instead, the ruling party had made it a political issue when we were in power. The government must implement OROP in its entirety and remove anomalies, otherwise things will be difficult.”Antony also asked the PM to apologise to the nation and the armed forces for misleading them on OROP. Gandhi, who was detained twice by the police, lamented detention of the kin of the deceased and called the action “shameful”. On his second attempt to meet the family members, Gandhi along with several senior Congress leaders was detained, but was soon released. Congress and AAP workers later staged protests.Kejriwal, who in a Twitter post claimed he was also detained, tore into the Centre by holding it guilty of “deceit” over OROP.BJP national secretary Shrikant Sharma said: “The suicide of an ex-Army man is most unfortunate and our sympathies are with his family. But what is even more unfortunate is the politics over his death.”

Govt for thorough probe

The circumstances in which Subedar Ram Kishan Grewal committed suicide, especially as to who provided him poison and if anybody had provoked him to take the extreme step, need to be thoroughly probed, the government feels. The subedar’s letter to the Ministry of Defence is dated October 31 but he committed suicide on November 1, raising several questions. The government also wants to ascertain who was with the deceased when he took the extreme step, say sources. TNS