Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar on Wednesday targeted the Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA government at the Centre over the alleged involvement of a Union Minister’s son in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence on October 3.

“Farmers were crushed to death in Lakhimpur. Farmers alleged that son of MoS was present. After SC observation, he was arrested. Ruling party should take a stand. Neither UP CM nor MoS Home can escape. MoS Home should resign,” Pawar said.

Ashish Mishra, one of the main accused in the incident, is the son of Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Mishra Teni.

A Congress delegation, led by Rahul Gandhi, today met President Ram Nath Kovind at Rashtrapati Bhavan to submit a memorandum on the incident seeking an independent inquiry and the removal of Teni.

The delegation, which included Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, AK Antony, Mallikarjun Kharge, and Ghulam Nabi Azad, requested a “direct an independent judicial investigation by a Commission comprising of two sitting judges of the Supreme Court of India or the High Court”.

The memorandum expressed the Opposition’s apprehension that no “police official would dare to fairly investigate the son of Union MoS Home Affairs with the father occupying a position of such high influence and who enjoys continued endorsements from both the central and the state governments.”

Meanwhile, Pawar also attacked Centre’s for “misusing some institutions like CBI, Income Tax, ED, and NCB for politics”. He claimed that the central probe agencies are being “misused” to target the Opposition.

Taking a dig at former chief minister and Maharashtra BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis, the NCP chief said, “It’s good that Devendra Fadnavis still considers himself as CM. I congratulate him. After being CM for five years, Fadnavis still feels he is holding the post. I lacked this trait. I had served as CM (of Maharashtra) four times. But I don’t even remember.”