Jamia jitters in Cong: ‘we must come clean on police encounter’

Party leaders met Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit asking for a judicial probe into the encounter.

Speaking to reporters, AICC general secretary Digvijay Singh said today that “questions have been raised (about the September 19 Jamia Nagar encounter) which have to be addressed.” At the same time, he maintained that this matter was “too sensitive for the party to take a political stand” in the absence of complete facts.

Said AICC Secretary Parvez Hashmi: “Reports have created apprehension among the minority community about the police encounter being fake. I, Kapil Sibal, some advocates and professors and representatives of the RWAs, therefore, met the Chief Minister on Monday to demand a judicial inquiry. She said she would talk to the Prime Minister. We will also meet the Prime Minister in this connection.”

Union Minister Sibal, when contacted, said he was present in the meeting with the CM but was not part of the delegation. “I just joined the proceedings. I had earlier gone to Batla House. It was, therefore, my duty to apprise the Congress President of the situation. I will also convey it to the Prime Minister,” Sibal said.

Ruling party sources said that the leadership was concerned about the “growing resentment” among the minority community against the incident.

This is also indicative of growing nervousness in the Congress in an election year. While the government must fight terror and be seen to fight it, the party must find the language to address the increasing disquiet in the Muslim community. A community seen for long as a traditional Congress constituency but one the party cannot take for granted in an increasingly fragmented polity.

Asked whether there was a political discussion within the party on framing a coherent strategy on internal security at a time when terrorism is also seen as “homegrown”, Salman Khursheed said: “It’s not yet coordinated…but jigsaw pieces. All this will come together in November-December.”

This articulation of doubts comes days after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said that the UPA Government has “no fixed, inflexible or ideological view” on stronger anti-terror legislation.