President must drop Sinha and Giriraj from Cabinet: CPI

New Delhi: The Communist Party of India (CPI)  on Monday urged President Ram Nath Kovind to drop Union ministers Jayant Sinha and Giriraj Singh from the Cabinet, alleging that they acted against the spirit of Constitution by “challenging the dictates of Supreme Court”.

In a statement, the Left party accused the ministers of supporting those accused of lynching.

Union minister of state for civil aviation Jayant Sinha stoked a controversy after he felicitated eight convicts in the Ramgarh lynching case when they came out of prison on bail last week, while minister of state for micro, small and medium enterprises Giriraj Singh paid a visit in jail to those accused of inciting communal violence.  

“President must drop Jayant Sinha and Giriraj Singh from Union Cabinet, who were not only violating the solemn oath, but also challenging the dictates of the highest court of the country,” the CPI said.

The party pointed out that the Supreme Court in its verdict had expressed its strong resentment on mass lynching by so-called cow vigilantes and categorically ordered the central and state governments to stop such inhuman and barbaric acts.

The Left party also alleged that these acts of the ministers were meant to “communalise” the social fabric of the country ahead of the upcoming MP, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh Assembly elections as well as the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

It accused the RSS-BJP and its “satellite” organisations of spreading “unfounded rumours” which ignited operations like lynching.  

The recent incidents in Tripura, Jharkhand, Maharashtra and Assam have resulted in a deep sense of fear among the Muslim minorities and all believers of Indian Constitution and democratic norms, the statement added.

Turning on the political heat, the Congress too on Monday questioned the silence of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on incidents of lynching in the country and demanded the resignation of Mr Sinha.