Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Monday rejected Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s reported offer to speak in Parliament, saying the Opposition was not interested in his “fantasy conversations” but wanted a direct answer on whether he authorised the police action against protesting students in Delhi.Addressing a press conference, along with Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Gandhi said the Opposition’s three demands, which had remained unchanged for the past 15 days, were non-negotiable and accountability for the alleged police firing on students during the July 20 protest at Jantar Mantar, an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the action against the protesters, and an explanation over alleged financial irregularities involving the Ram Mandir trust.“We are not interested in his fantasy conversations. We are interested in whether he authorised the shooting of our children,” Gandhi said. He said Shah must first make it clear whether he had ordered the firing on the students.“Did you had given the order to shoot the children or not? If you did, you are culpable. If you did not and somebody else ordered it, you are incompetent. Either way, you have to go,” Gandhi said.Gandhi said the Opposition had been demanding an answer from the Home Minister since the beginning of the controversy, alleging that students were beaten, subjected to lathi-charge and fired upon with pellet guns during the July 20 protest at Jantar Mantar.“Our first demand was that the Home Minister come and clearly tell the country whether he gave the order. If he gave the order, he is culpable. If he did not give the order and somebody else did, then he is incompetent,” he said.The second demand, Gandhi said, was that the Prime Minister apologise for the treatment meted out to the protesting students.The third was linked to what Gandhi alleged was the theft of crores of rupees from the Ram Mandir trust by people close to the Prime Minister. “These are our three issues. This has been our position from day one. Our position has not changed,” Gandhi said.Kharge said the Opposition’s first demand was for the Home Minister to come to Parliament and explain why force was used against the protesting students, including the alleged deployment of pellet guns, tear gas and lathi-charge.He said the Opposition had also sought answers from the Prime Minister over alleged theft from the Ram Mandir trust, accusing people trusted by him of being involved in the alleged wrongdoing.Kharge said the Opposition had demanded that Modi himself come forward and provide details on the matter, but no explanation had been given so far.“Our third demand is that the Prime Minister apologise to the people on these two issues,” Kharge said, adding that neither Modi nor Shah had addressed the matters in Parliament during the past 15 days.“We are fighting on all these issues,” Kharge said. Gandhi rejected the government’s suggestion that the Opposition should listen to Shah if he came to Parliament, saying the issue was not about hearing the Home Minister’s views on other subjects.“We are not interested in Amit Shah coming here and giving a speech on any subject, making general comments. We have no interest in that and neither does the country,” Gandhi said.He also accused Shah and Modi of lacking the courage to face Parliament over the issue. “For 15 days, neither of them has had the courage, and I am stressing courage, to come to the House. Neither of them has had the guts to own up to what they have done,” Gandhi said.Gandhi said neither the Prime Minister nor the Home Minister appeared to consider the alleged brutality against students in Delhi worthy of an explanation.He also accused the government of trying to divert attention from the issue. “The drama that is going on, the attempt to repair the balloon that Amit Shah’s balloon has burst, the attempt is to fill it with gas again. It has burst again,” Gandhi said.Gandhi further said the Opposition would continue to press its demands during the remaining days of the Monsoon Session, warning that if the government did not change its position, the entire session could be washed out.On the reported use of force against protesting students in Jharkhand, Gandhi said peaceful protests by students must be respected and their grievances addressed through dialogue.“The use of force against students protesting in Jharkhand is wrong. Students have a right to peaceful protest, and only dialogue can yield solutions. The Jharkhand government must continue to hear these students out and resolve their issues immediately,” he said.Gandhi said the Congress opposed violence against peaceful student protesters irrespective of where it took place. “There is no confusion in our mind. As long as the protest is peaceful, attacking that protest with violence is wrong,” he said.Kharge also reiterated that the Opposition was seeking answers to specific questions rather than a general statement from the government.