The Delhi Assembly resolution describing the 1984 anti-Sikh violence as a genocide has no mention of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s name, a summary of House proceedings shows, PTI reported on Monday. On Saturday, Delhi Assembly Speaker Ram Niwas Goel asserted that there was no mention of a demand to revoke Gandhi’s Bharat Ratna in Friday’s resolution.
“In the original resolution, which was distributed among the legislators and me, Rajiv Gandhi’s name was not mentioned,” Goel had said, adding that there is a procedure to make amendments in the resolution. However, Aam Aadmi Party legislators Somnath Bharti and Jarnail Singh had demanded an addition to the resolution that Gandhi be stripped of the Bharat Ratna for his remarks that were seen as justifying the violence.
Legislator Alka Lamba had agreed to resign from the Aam Aadmi Party after she reportedly did not support the proposal to revoke Gandhi’s Bharat Ratna. However, she later said she was happy that the party was now supporting the Bharat Ratna for Rajiv Gandhi, and deleted her earlier tweet where she said she was ready to face any consequence.
On Sunday, members of the Youth Congress protested outside the AAP office, demanding that the party apologise for the legislation. Delhi Congress chief Ajay Maken claimed that AAP was “hand in glove” with the Bharatiya Janata and said the party should also call the 2002 Gujarat riots a “genocide”.
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