BJP says ‘no caste angle’ in Haldwani incident, accuses Rahul Gandhi of playing divisive politics

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday (August 29, 2026) cited testimonies of two Scheduled Caste eyewitnesses to claim that they exposed Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi’s narrative over an alleged incident in Haldwani, Uttarakhand, earlier this month.

The attack came after Mr. Gandhi targeted the party and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), alleging that a “purification” ceremony was organised at a rally venue addressed by Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge in Haldwani. Mr. Gandhi also sought a First Information Report (FIR) on the incident.

At a joint press conference, BJP leaders Guru Prakash Paswan and Sudhanshu Trivedi argued that a 20-day delay in raising the matter and seeking an FIR suggested that there was no genuine issue or legal basis. They said the matter was being used by the Congress as a “political opportunity” to further its politics of creating “social divisions”.

They played videos of two eyewitnesses, who are members of an organisation that cleaned the stage and organised a “havan” at the venue, which is a Ramlila site. They denied allegations of caste discrimination.

Referring to the eyewitnesses, Mr. Trivedi suggested that a counter-FIR could potentially be filed without specifying against whom.

Accusing Mr. Gandhi of continuously supporting “forces that break society” and trying to create “a narrative based on lies”, Mr. Paswan described him and the Congress as “anti-Dalit” and “neo-feudal”. He said the party and its leaders had ill-treated Mr. Kharge, former Puducherry Chief Minister V. Narayanasamy, and senior Haryana Congress leader Kumari Selja, among others.

“History is witness to how Babasaheb Ambedkar and Babu Jagjivan Ram were treated. Babu Jagjivan Ram had to leave the Congress, and for the first time the country saw a person from the Dalit community become Deputy Prime Minister, in a government formed by the Bharatiya Jana Sangh,” Mr. Paswan said. He alleged that Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister G. Parameshwara had publicly said he was not made Chief Minister because he was a Dalit.

“Today your government is in many States. How many SC, ST, and OBC Chief Ministers are there?” he asked, listing leaders from the Scheduled Tribe (ST) and Scheduled Caste (SC) communities who have held important positions under BJP-led governments, including President Droupadi Murmu, Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, besides several Chief Ministers and Deputy Chief Ministers.

“Who ensured that Babasaheb Ambedkar would not win the election? From Babu Jagjivan Ram to Babasaheb Ambedkar, Kanshi Ram and Sitaram Kesri, what kind of treatment was meted out to them? And they ask us about our commitment… the history of the Congress is one of neo-feudalism, extreme casteism, and being anti-Dalit,” Mr. Paswan said.

Mr. Trivedi alleged that Mr. Gandhi and the Congress repeatedly raise different identity issues, including gender, region, State, language and caste, with what he described as the underlying agenda of making “Hindus fight among themselves”. He also alleged that the Congress had a record of neglecting or mistreating Dalits.

The BJP leader mentioned cases of violence against Dalits in Rajasthan and Karnataka under the Congress governments to allege that the party failed to protect them.