Police personnel use tear gas to disperse protestors in Guwahati.
Two Congress leaders died due to "police action" during protests in Guwahati and Lucknow on Wednesday, the party has claimed.
Police in both cities, however, said the deaths did not occur because of their actions and no injury marks were found on the two leaders' bodies. The exact reason for the deaths, they added, will be clear after the post-mortem is conducted.
Congress MP and Leader of Opposition In Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi condemned the deaths, saying "democracy and Constitution have been murdered again in BJP-ruled Assam and Uttar Pradesh".
In a post on X, Mr Gandhi said the death of the Congress leaders in Guwahati and Lucknow "due to police excesses is very sad and condemnable". "The lions of Congress will continue to fight for truth and the Constitution," he said.
The incidents took place in the two cities as the Congress held a nationwide protest over several issues, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah's remarks on BR Ambedkar, alleged government inaction over the violence in Manipur and a demand for the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir's statehood.
The incidents took place in the two cities as the Congress held a nationwide protest over several issues, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah's remarks on BR Ambedkar, alleged government inaction over the violence in Manipur and a demand for the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir's statehood.
"Tear Gas Firing" in Assam
In Guwahati, a Congress march towards the Raj Bhavan turned violent when the protesters clashed with police, who tried to disperse the crowd.
Several leaders, including Assam Congress chief Bhupen Kumar Borah and former Rajya Sabha MP Ripun Bora, were detained by the police and taken away in buses.
Congress leaders alleged the police fired tear gas shells to disperse the remaining crowd. They said Mridul Islam, who was a lawyer and the secretary of the state unit's legal cell, suffered injuries and was rushed to Guwahati Medical College and Hospital, where he died of his injuries.
"When more than 8,000 people were proceeding towards the Governor's House, all of a sudden, the Assam Police fired tear gas shells. They used it thrice... Many journalists were injured. I was also injured. Unfortunately, one of our colleagues died on the spot," Mr Borah said.
He described the police action on the protesters as a "pre-planned conspiracy" against the opposition party. "This is a pre-planned conspiracy to kill Congress workers and create a fear psychosis... The Congress is not scared of it," he said.
Assam Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi also condemned the "brutal torture" by the state police. "I condemn such actions of the government who do not understand the language of democratic protest," he said in a post on Facebook.
Guwahati Police Commissioner Diganta Barah, however, said the tear gas shells were not fired, but rolled. "Police only rolled three shells onto the road so that the people would be dispersed by the smoke. The protesters took them and threw them at the police," he said.
Mr Barah also said that there were no injury marks on Islam's body. "We are told that he complained of uneasiness and was rushed to the hospital," he said.
The Assam Congress has filed a first information report (FIR) against the state police, accusing it of using excessive force to halt the party's protest.
Uttar Pradesh Death
In Lucknow, Gorakhpur's Youth Congress leader Prabhat Pandey died after police allegedly used force to disperse the crowd that had gathered near the state assembly. Congress workers said Pandey died of suffocation after the police used force and the people in the crowd panicked and began pushing each other.
State Congress chief Ajay Rai claimed that Pandey died due to "police brutality".
"Today, while going to gherao the assembly, our young colleague Prabhat Pandey ji passed away due to police brutality," Mr Rai said in a post on X.
"This incident is extremely sad and condemnable. Our Congress family is hurt and angry by this accident. We will not tolerate this incident at all," he added.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central Lucknow) Raveena Tyagi, however, said no force was used during the protest and that Pandey was taken to the Civil Hospital in Hazratganj in an unconscious condition from the Congress office. "The doctors declared him dead," she said.
The officer also said that there was no visible injury mark on Pandey's body. "Apart from this, a post-mortem would be done by a panel and the process will be videographed. Accordingly, further legal proceedings would be carried out," she added.
Mr Rai demanded a compensation of Rs 1 crore to Pandey's family and a government job to one of the members.
Pandey's uncle has filed a police case, stating that he was informed that his nephew was lying unconscious in the Congress office for two hours.
"My 31-year-old nephew was preparing for an exam by staying in a paying-guest accommodation. I don't know how he reached the Congress office. My nephew was not suffering from any disease and it seems that something untoward has happened to him. I think he was probably murdered," he said in the First Information Report.