Published 12:32 IST, January 8th 2021
BJP MP Varun Gandhi attacks Cong’s Tharoor over man holding tricolour at US Capitol
A day after BJP MP Varun Gandhi spotted an Indian flag among the pro-Trump supporters who stormed into Capitol Hill, he has made another massive allegation
A day after BJP MP Varun Gandhi spotted an Indian flag among the pro-Trump supporters who stormed into Capitol Hill, he has on Friday, made another massive allegation. Sharing pictures of the man who held Indian Tricolour in the Capitol Hill protest, Varun Gandhi has alleged that he is a "dear friend" of Congress MP Shashi Tharoor and questioned if Congress was the "silent hand" behind the violence in the US.
A war-of-words broke out between Gandhi and Tharoor on Wednesday when the BJP MP tweeted the image of the Indian flag among the pro-Trump supporters. Responding to this, Tharoor said that there are some Indians with the "same mentality as that Trumpist mob." In a sharp response to Tharoor's statement, Varun Gandhi asked as to why most liberals have "flagrantly ignored" and stayed mum on misuse of the Indian flag in anti-national protests in India like that in JNU, he said. Later on Friday, Varun Gandhi shared images of a man named Vincent Xavier - who raised the National flag in Capitol Hill and asked Tharoor if the Congress party was silently supporting the mayhem in Washington DC.
Meanwhile, responding to both the leaders, Vincent Xavier took to Twitter to state that they were "American patriots" from different countries - Vietnamese, Indian, Korean & Iranian origins, who protested because they believed in "massive voter fraud". He also claimed that it was their right to protest "peacefully" in solidarity of Donald Trump. He shared images of flags of various nations from the Capitol Hill violence. Other Twitter users pointed out that Xavier is a Congress supporter and has met several Cong leaders in the past.
US Capitol siege by Pro-Trump supporters
On Wednesday afternoon, thousands of Trump supporters broke barricades outside the US Capitol and marched into the building. Scaling walls using scaffolding and breaking windows to enter the building. Inside the building, rioters banged on doors, trying to push through doors and fought with police. As per reports, by 2 PM, Capitol Police ordered all staff, reporters and nearby senators into the Senate chamber, which was sealed off and put on lockdown. Visuals from inside the Capitol show the rioters inside US Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office, inside the Congress and Senate Hall as police officers deployed tear gas inside the building. After the building was secured, at least four people have died.
The siege on Capitol Hill occurred after President Trump gave a speech from the White House, urging protesters to march and gather at the Capitol after making false claims of electoral fraud. Later, after the siege, President-elect Biden condemned the violence, urging Trump to 'stop this carnage' and 'do his Constitutional duty'. Trump, later gave a speech telling rioters to 'go home in peace', before formally conceding the election.
Updated 12:33 IST, January 8th 2021