Kanhaiya Kumar accuses Manoj Tiwari of assault

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 18

INDIA bloc’s candidate for North East Delhi Kanhaiya Kumar on Saturday accused the constituency’s current MP Manoj Tiwari of orchestrating an attack on him due to the fear of losing popularity.

On Friday, a group of individuals allegedly assaulted and threw ink at Kumar outside the AAP office in New Usmanpur, shortly after a meeting with local councillor Chhaya Sharma.

At a press conference here, Kumar claimed that Tiwari had been spreading false rumours and doctored videos to instigate the public against him. “Instead of showing his work, ever since I was nominated as the candidate for North East Delhi, the MP (Tiwari) is continuously lying, circulating doctored videos and trying to instigate the common people,” he said.

Kumar criticised Tiwari for focusing on misleading tactics rather than showcasing his achievements, asserting that the incumbent MP lacks substantial projects to his name over the past decade.

“I feel that somewhere he has started to believe that perhaps the people of the constituency are not accepting him. That is why instead of answering the questions we are raising on behalf of the people of North East Delhi, he is carrying out such attacks,” he alleged.

Kumar emphasised that despite the attack, he remains undeterred and encouraged his supporters to focus on voting in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, viewing it as their last resort to counteract misinformation. He portrayed himself as the underdog, contrasting his financial status with that of Tiwari, and urged the public to remain focused on the core issues.

In response, Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor accused Kumar of embodying a divisive, “anti-national” ideology and claimed that his controversial image has led to public rejection, as seen in the 2019 elections in Begusarai.

“Kumar is a symbol of the divisive ‘tukde-tukde’ thought throughout the country, and wherever he goes, this divisive, anti-national image will go with him,” he said.

Does PM condone ‘attack’ on Kanhaiya: Cong

The Congress demanded answers from Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday on whether he condones a violent attack on the Opposition party’s Lok Sabha poll candidate, Kanhaiya Kumar, allegedly by an associate of BJP leader Manoj Tiwari and what happened to the plan to clean the Yamuna.

In a post on X, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh also asked what has the PM done to curb the high crime rates in North East Delhi. Ramesh alleged that Kumar was assaulted in a pre-planned attack by a goonda linked to the ruling BJP. The attacker has previously shared the podium with Tiwari and was even arrested three months ago for attempting to foment communal violence, the Congress leader alleged.

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