Rahul Gandhi to meet Parbhani victim’s family on December 23

Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi visits Parbhani to meet family of deceased law student, highlighting caste issues and government accountability.

Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi is visiting Parbhani on Monday (December 23, 2024) to meet the family members of Somnath Vyankat Suryawanshi, a law student who died in judicial custody after the violence broke out in Parbhani.

Mr. Gandhi will board a special flight from New Delhi to Nanded at 11 a.m. and from Nanded, at 1.15 p.m., he will drive by road to Parbhani. He is expected to reach the victim’s home in Parbhani by 2.45 p.m. and leave from Nanded to New Delhi the same evening by 5.15 p.m. He will be accompanied by Maharashtra State Congress president Nana Patole and senior Congress leaders like Vijay Wadettiwar.

Speaking to The Hindu, Maharashtra Pradesh Youth Congress chairman Akshay Jain said, “This Mr. Gandhi’s first official visit to Maharashtra after the State Assembly election... when unpleasant things happen in the society which should not happen in the first place, an Opposition leader’s visit can create pressure on the ruling government and give out a strong message that they are left with no choice but to take stringent action into the matter. The bureaucrats are trying to cover up the matter and it is quite clear how caste has played a major role in this case, along with other cases that has happened in the recent times in Maharashtra.”

On December 10, massive violence broke out in the Marathwada region of Parbhani where people indulged in arson, stone-pelting and vandalisation of public and private property. The incident happened during a bandh called to protest the vandalism of a replica of the Constitution placed in a glass box near a statue of Dr. B. R. Ambedkar near Parbhani Railway Station.

Suryawanshi, 35, hailing from the Wadar community, was one of the accused arrested in the case. Around 72 hours later, he was found dead in judicial custody, leading to massive furore. The Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi (VBA), CPI (Marxist), Republican Party of India (A), Republican Sena, Republican Party of India (K), and many other Dalit groups slammed the ruling Mahayuti regime for the incident.