New Delhi, Aug 1: The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Saturday lauded Prime Minister Narendra Modi for choosing to forgive students who had used abusive language against him during the recent protests, describing his response as an example of statesmanship and compassionate leadership.

Party leaders also contrasted his reaction with the Indira Gandhi-led government’s response to protests by political parties. The leaders said that while Indira Gandhi imposed the Emergency, PM Modi had chosen guidance over retaliation.

The remarks came a day after Prime Minister Modi released a video message on his official Instagram account, saying he simply wanted to speak directly to the country’s youth.

Referring to the recent protests at Jantar Mantar over the NEET paper leaks, he said that some “mischievous youngsters” had used language that was unbecoming of any civilised society.

He noted that not only was he targeted, but his late mother was also subjected to deeply appalling abuse. Acknowledging the strong public reaction, the Prime Minister said mistakes are part of childhood and that childhood itself provides the opportunity to correct those mistakes.

The Prime Minister made it clear that he wished to forgive them and hoped society would accept this sentiment, adding that he held only one feeling in his heart.

Reacting to the Prime Minister’s message, BJP spokesperson Pratul Shahdeo told media, “It is truly remarkable. Our Prime Minister has an extraordinary heart. No one becomes Narendra Modi just like that. At Jantar Mantar, a section of the youth used abusive language even against his mother. They used all kinds of derogatory and offensive words against him personally.

“Yet, the Prime Minister released his video message and said, ‘They are children. It is their immaturity. They should not have used such language, but they are our children.’ The way he appealed to them, asking them to leave the path of abuse and contribute to nation-building, is something that no statesman can do.”

Drawing a comparison with the political past, Shahdeo added, “Similar protests happened during Indira Gandhi’s tenure as the Prime Minister; however, she responded with the Emergency. On the other hand, our Prime Minister has forgiven the students and shown them the right path. We are proud of him.”

BJP spokesperson Shahnawaz Hussain also praised the Prime Minister’s remarks, saying, “The Prime Minister yesterday spoke not just as the Prime Minister, but as a guardian of the country’s children. He acted like a statesman and showed a large heart despite the fact that even his late mother was abused during the protest. The Prime Minister has forgiven the students who used derogatory language. There should not be any politics in this.”

Bihar BJP President Sanjay Saraogi described the Prime Minister as a leader with an “exceptionally large and compassionate heart.”

“During the student protest, the entire country witnessed students using highly obscene and abusive language. It was made very clear that the remarks were not only directed at the Prime Minister but also at his late mother. The kind of obscene language used against the Prime Minister’s late mother was so offensive that it cannot even be repeated or heard in a civilised society. However, our Prime Minister has guided them to the right path and has forgiven them,” Saraogi told media.

Senior BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said the Prime Minister’s response conveyed a larger message about leadership and public conduct.

“This is a lesson and a message for everyone. On one side, there is the sensitivity of PM Narendra Modi, and on the other side, there is the feudal arrogance of certain people. Wherever there is sensitivity on one side, there is also such arrogance on the other,” Naqvi said.

He further alleged that the Prime Minister has consistently been the target of what he termed an “abuse gang.”

“PM Modi has been a target of this ‘abuse gang’ from the very beginning. This ‘abuse gang’ has repeatedly tried to use the shoulders of different sections of society — sometimes youth, sometimes farmers, sometimes women, and sometimes students — as a tool, carrying what they call criminal conspiracies, in an attempt to tarnish the country’s image and reputation,” Naqvi claimed.

Patna, Aug 1: The Congress has launched a two-day fact-finding mission to investigate the police action during student protests linked to the recent NEET paper-leak controversy in Bihar.

The party has constituted six teams comprising MPs, MLAs, MLCs, and senior Congress leaders, which will visit Patna, Jehanabad, Bhagalpur, Darbhanga, Purnea and Siwan on August 1 and 2.

Madan Mohan Jha, the MLC and senior Congress leader of Bihar, told media that the objective of the exercise is to establish the facts surrounding the student protests, police action and the condition of students allegedly affected during the police action.

According to a letter issued by the party, the teams will meet the District Magistrates and Superintendents of Police in the respective districts and raise questions regarding the police action during the protests.

The teams will also meet students and youths who were arrested, detained or otherwise affected.

Wherever possible, they will meet students currently lodged in jail and speak to their families to understand the circumstances surrounding the incidents.

The Congress teams are also expected to visit the locations where police action took place.

“The fact-finding teams will collect available documentary and other evidence, including FIRs and case documents, medical reports, videos and photographs, statements from eyewitnesses, information from lawyers and civil society representatives, accounts of affected students and their families, and statements from public representatives and government officials,” Jha, who is part of a team visiting Darbhanga, said.

The teams will specifically examine allegations of excessive use of force by police, as well as claims that students were wrongfully implicated, arrested or harassed.

Jha said each team would prepare a detailed report covering the sequence of events, arrests and detentions, criminal cases registered, and allegations of police excesses.

The reports will also include medical and legal documents, eyewitness accounts and recommendations from the respective teams.

After the six district reports are completed, the Congress plans to prepare a consolidated Bihar Fact-Finding Report.

According to the party, the findings will subsequently be made public through press conferences in Patna and New Delhi.

The Congress has assigned specific district-wise responsibilities to different leaders, with the two-day exercise aimed at documenting the events surrounding the student protests and assessing the allegations made against the police.

New Delhi, July 31: The Supreme Court has ruled that a married daughter cannot be denied consideration for compassionate appointment merely because a state government policy allows such appointments only to divorced or deserted daughters, holding that such a classification is unconstitutional and violative of Article 14 of the Constitution.

A Bench of Justices M.M. Sundresh and Prasanna B. Varale allowed an appeal filed by Sayara Khatoon and her daughter against a Patna High Court order, which had upheld the rejection of the daughter’s claim for compassionate appointment following the death of her father.

The appellants had questioned the Bihar government’s December 10, 2014 policy, under which only a divorced or deserted daughter is eligible for compassionate appointment.

The state government had also rejected the claim on the ground that the deceased employee’s brother had objected to the appointment.

However, the Supreme Court recorded that the brother had earlier furnished a no-objection certificate, observing that “the said ground for rejection no longer survives”.

On the policy restricting compassionate appointment to divorced or deserted daughters, the Justice Sundresh-led Bench held that any distinction between sons and daughters in such matters is constitutionally impermissible.

“This Court has repeatedly held that any classification differentiating a daughter from a son is, per se, unconstitutional,” the apex court said.

It added that “classification restricting eligibility only to a divorced or deserted daughter cannot be sustained in the eye of law”.

Rejecting the presumption underlying the Bihar government’s policy, the Supreme Court observed: “There cannot be a presumption in law that, after marriage, a daughter severs her ties with her parental family and resides with her husband in her matrimonial home.”

The order noted that the appellant had specifically stated that although her divorce had not been formally recognised in law, she had been living with her parental family and enjoyed the support of her mother and brother.

“In any event, adopting a hyper-technical approach cannot be a ground to deny consideration of her claim for compassionate appointment,” the bench said.

Setting aside the Patna High Court’s order as well as the rejection of the compassionate appointment claim, the apex court directed the Bihar authorities to reconsider the appellant’s case on merits.

“The respondent (Bihar government) is directed to consider the case of the appellant for compassionate appointment on merits within a period of eight weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order,” it ordered.