Himachal Pradesh Congress MLAs protest flag BJP's 'double standards' on law and order

Dharamshala (HP), Nov 26 (PTI) The MLAs of the ruling Congress party on Wednesday accused the BJP of adopting "double standards" on law and order and raised slogans outside the Vidhan Sabha premises in Dharamshala.
    The protest comes on the heels of a series of allegations against BJP leaders and their family members, including the state BJP chief's brother, who was arrested last month for allegedly raping a woman.
    The protest was held on the first day of the 10-day-long Winter session of the Himachal Pradesh assembly that started on Wednesday.
    Speaking to reporters, Revenue Minister Jagat Singh Negi said the BJP is continuously trying to spread confusion across the country "by making law and order an issue".
    Claiming that it is "not a problem", Negi said, "In reality, the problem is with the BJP MLAs and in most of the incidents that are being reported across the country, names of BJP office-bearers, MPs, and MLAs have surfaced, and they have been implicated."
    He also said that in recent times, cases of sexual harassment have increased, and serious allegations have surfaced involving BJP leaders.
    "Across the country, BJP leaders' names have come up in matters, ranging from job placements to ticket distribution," Negi said.
    The BJP legislator from the Churah assembly segment in Chamba, Hans Raj, was booked for aggravated penetrative sexual assault under Section 6 of the POCSO Act and sexual intercourse by making a false promise of marriage under Section 69 of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
    Ram Kumar Bindal, the elder brother of state BJP chief Rajiv Bindal, was arrested by the Solan police for allegedly raping a 25-year-old woman, and Brijeshwar Kashyap, the elder son of former BJP MP from the Shimla constituency Virender Kashyap, was booked on charges of sexual intercourse on the pretext of false promise of marriage and criminal intimidation.
    The revenue minister demanded that the BJP leadership be held accountable for the growing number of such cases.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)