Bhopal, July 7 (IANS) The Opposition Congress will stage a protest to oppose an FIR lodged against the party’s Madhya Pradesh unit chief Jitu Patwari in Ashoknagar district.

The state Congress has named the proposed protest ‘Nyay ki Ladai’ (fight for justice) will commence after 11 am on Tuesday, during which thousands of party leaders and workers will assemble at Ashoknagar SP’s office.

Many senior leaders, including former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijaya Singh, former Union Minister Kantilal Bhuria, former state Congress president Arun Yadav, along with lakhs of party leaders from across the state, have already reached Ashoknagar.

Hours before the protest, Congress launched a campaign on social media platforms, appealing to party leaders and workers to join the protest in Ashoknagar.

The opposition has also appealed general public to support the Congress’s agitation.

“Congress workers will ‘gherao’ Ashoknagar SP office to oppose a fake FIR lodged against PCC head Jitu Patwari. A campaign on social media has been launched to appeal to party workers and other common people to support the Congress’s ‘Nyay ki Ladai’, Congress spokesperson Mithun Ahirwar told IANS.

Meanwhile, several homes of Congress workers and leaders, and the Ashoknagar city area have become party offices. Posters have been put up with the slogan ‘mera ghar Congress ka ghar’ to invite party workers from different parts to reach there to join the protest.

Notably, FIR against state Congress president Jitu Patwari was registered in Mungaoli police station of Ashoknagar district on June 29 after a video went viral in which a youth identified as Raghuraj Lodhi claimed that the village Sarpanch and his son beat his brother Gajraj Lodhi and forced him to eat human faeces.

Based on the video, Jitu Patwari had questioned the law-and-order situation in the state, alleging that Dalits were deliberately being targeted by the BJP government.

He had also spoken Ashoknagar district collector and SP and had demanded action against the accused persons. However, on Friday, Gajraj Lodhi (who was allegedly beaten up) filed an affidavit before the district collector of Ashoknagar in which he said that the Jitu Patwari had enticed him falsely that he was fed faeces.

Following which, an FIR was registered against Jitu Patwari, and he was booked under Sections 61(2) criminal conspiracy, 196(1)(a) promoting enmity, 197(1)(c) assertion causing disharmony and hatred, 229(2) fabricating false evidence, 237 false declarations, and 353(1)(c) mischief of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

Previously, several senior BJP leaders, including Chief Minister Mohan Yadav, state BJP chief V. D. Sharma and Union Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, have criticised Jitu Patwari, alleging that the Congress was trying to vitiate the atmosphere of the state by spreading lies.

–IANS

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