Pushed to the back-foot, following the “insulting” remarks targeting BR Ambedkar and the aggressive posturing of the Opposition, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had no other go but to trigger an ugly brawl with accusations and ambience to divert the attention of the people. BJP MP Anurag Thakur filed an FIR against Rahul Gandhi, charging the LoP of the Lok Sabha with attempt to murder as also the charge of "misbehaving" with BJP tribal MP Phangnon Konyak.

Konyak accused Rahul of intimidating her during the fracas. Konyak alleged Rahul Gandhi "misbehaved with her in a loud voice" and that his physical proximity was so close, it made her feel extremely uncomfortable."

The reality is Konyak was with fellow BJP MPs and their intention was to stop INDIA bloc MPs from entering Parliament House. Konyak's complaint betrayed gender bias and was more than an accusation. The BJP accused Rahul of “goondagardi (hooliganism)”, using “sharirik shakti (physical strength)” and “kungfu” to push and shove senior BJP MPs.

BJP’s social media head Amit Malviya gave a new twist to the "misbehaviour charge" asking for the arrest of Rahul Gandhi under the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act and for outraging the modesty and undermining dignity of a woman in the precinct of Parliament. Yet, another FIR charged Rahul Gandhi with "pushing two BJP MPs."

The two FIRs were not supported with evidence. The incident took place in Parliament, which has massive CCTV network, but the BJP couldn't furnish CCTV footage to prove the charges against Rahul Gandhi. CCTV footage would expose the "Gujarati conspiracy" against Rahul Gandhi.

A question being asked is who permitted the BJP MPs to carry "lathis" into the House and why did the CISF personnel guarding Parliament did not bar the entry of the lathi-wielding MPs into Parliament?

The incident made it abundantly clear that Amit Shah had succeeded in importing his brand of muscle-power politics to the Parliament. The lathi-wielding BJP MPs, obstructing the path of the INDIA bloc MPs, was a display of raw power.

Another feature of this brand of politics was BJP MPs coming out in full force alleging that Rahul Gandhi had pushed two BJP MPs down the stairs. RJD president Lalu Prasad said the Union Home Minister was a "lunatic" and should quit politics immediately.

The Congress also kept its guns trained on Shah on the issue of "disrespecting Ambedkar." Rahul Gandhi maintained that the BJP was creating distractions to divert attention from the main issue — Adani and his indictment in the United States of America!

INDIA bloc cadres and leaders hit the streets across the country against the BJP plot to frame Rahul Gandhi, and sought Amit Shah's resignation for insulting Ambedkar. They charged Shah with "mischief" and "ill-intentions", alleging that Shah's "evil designs" were explicit.

The INDIA bloc alleged Shah was using Ambedkar for political gains and was nursing "wicked intentions" as manifested in his behaviour and in the manner in which he spoke about Ambedkar in the Rajya Sabha.

Amit Shah did not only project Ambedkar as an irrelevant person, he also projected Ambedkar as a worthless creature. He shouldn't have said “Itna naam agar bhagwan ka lete to saat janmon tak swarg mil jaata.” Crores of the Dalit, poor, minorities, even enlightened general class people revere Ambedkar but Shah reinforced the perception that the RSS and the BJP hated Babasaheb.

For the RSS/BJP, Ambedkar was only a means to entice the Dalit, poor, EBC and OBC and use them to accomplish the mission of turning India into a "Hindu Rashtra." Unfortunately for Amit Shah, his "test case" exploded on his face and put the saffron ecosystem in double jeopardy.

Now, it is time Amit Shah apologised and resigned. Projecting Rahul as a villain has once again backfired on the BJP and on the Union Home Minister. The BJP plot was to put Rahul Gandhi in the dock and provide the much needed respite to the beleaguered "Gujarati duo".

Demonising Ambedkar reflected the extreme hate the BJP harboured for Ambedkar. The rightwing hates Ambedkar's ideological and philosophical commitment which is a rebuff to Manusmriti, the saffron ecosystem's holy book.

The BJP reveres Ambedkar only for electoral gains. Shah's rude remarks were part of a conspiracy to deprecate democracy and the Constitution, and promote Manusmriti. Amit Shah was simply trying to assess public response. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge's demand that Shah should either resign or Prime Minister Narendra Modi should sack him "before midnight" unnerved the saffron ecosystem.

The BJP leadership has made it a point only to target the Congress. Important thing to note is, how could anyone twist a speech given on the floor of the house? Shah knows that there is audio available of his speech and this cannot be tampered with but the "Godi Media" will rise to the occasion and fabricate and play the tape to their "political bosses satisfaction".

But despite and in spite of all this, the situation is slipping out of hand. Prime Minister Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah's efforts to divert peoples’ attention will at the end of the day come short.

The protests against Shah's depiction of Ambedkar have taken on a pan-India hue and two Congress leaders had died from "police action" in Guwahati and Lucknow, prompting Rahul Gandhi to say that "democracy and the Constitution have been murdered in BJP-ruled Assam and Uttar Pradesh".

"We have been protesting for so many days and there is always space for people to enter freely. Peaceful protests are taking place daily from 10.30 am to 11 am. Today, for the first time, they (BJP MPs) protested and stopped everyone and then indulged in pushing and 'goodagardi' (hooliganism)'. And now to save Amit Shah's skin they have started this conspiracy that "bhaiya" has pushed someone. Right before my eyes, Khargeji was pushed and he fell to the ground. Then they pushed a CPI(M) MP who fell on Khargeji. I thought it would have broken his leg as it was visible from his face that he was hurt," said Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. (IPA Service)