New Delhi, February 24 Terming the arrest of Indian Youth Congress (IYC) president Uday Bhanu Chib as "unjustified," senior Congress leader Anand Sharma on Tuesday demanded his immediate release and said the right to non-violent protest must be protected in a democracy.
Sharma, a former IYC president, said the law of the land cannot be used expediently to target ideological opponents.
The Delhi Police arrested Chib as the "main conspirator" and "mastermind" of the shirtless protest staged by a group of Congress' youth wing members at the AI Impact Summit here last week, officials said on Tuesday.
A Delhi court has sent Chib to four-day police custody. The police have also stepped up security across key locations in the capital in anticipation of possible protests following Chib’s arrest, which has brought the total number of people held in the case to eight.
In a post on X, Sharma said, "As a former IYC President, I am shocked over the unjustified arrest of IYC president Uday Bhanu Chib. In a democracy, the right to non-violent protest has to be respected, and also protected. Laws of the land cannot be expediently used to target ideological opponents."
"Student and youth organizations represent the stakeholders in the future of society, their voices must be heard and not suppressed. I demand immediate release of the IYC president," the former Union minister said.
Last Friday, a group of IYC workers staged a dramatic protest inside Hall No. 5 of the summit venue by removing their shirts to reveal T-shirts printed with slogans against the government and the India-US interim trade deal, before being whisked away by security personnel.