Hathras gangrape: At a protest in Kolkata.
Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut Friday condemned the way Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was treated by the UP Police when he was on his way to meet Hathras victim's family, and termed it as "gang-rape of democracy". Gandhi was a leader of a prominent political party, Gandhi said, adding that nobody would support the way he was "manhandled" by the police. "We may have differences with the Congress party. He (Rahul Gandhi) can be stopped from going to Hathras citing imposition of section 144, but the way police behaved with him holding his collar...the way he was pushed and then thrown on the ground was highly condemnable," he said.
Meanwhile, a delegation of Trinamool MPs, including Derek O' Brien, Dr Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, Pratima Mondal and Mamata Thakur, was stopped by the Uttar Pradesh Police from entering Hathras, where a 19-year-old Dalit woman was allegedly gangraped two weeks ago and later died in a Delhi hospital, triggering nationwide outrage. Derek O' Brien was also shoved by a Joint Magistrate when he got into an argument with the cops. The MPs had travelled about 200 kms from Delhi and were reportedly stopped around two km from the victim's house. This comes a day after Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi were detained by the UP Police while they were on their way to Hathras.
On Thursday, the Allahabad High Court had taken suo motu cognizance of the alleged gangrape and fatal assault and of the Dalit woman, in Hathras and her hurried cremation, while directing senior officials of state government and police, including district administration, to be present at the next hearing on October 12. The court has summoned UP Additional Chief Secretary, Police chief, Additional Director General of Police, Hathras District Magistrate and Superintendent of Police in the case.
In Maharashtra, meanwhile, Congress workers held a demonstration over the detention of the Gandhis and demanded dismissal of the Yogi Adityanath government. Other Opposition leaders also came down heavily on the UP government. While NCP chief Pawar called the "reckless behaviour" of UP Police towards Rahul Gandhi "extremely condemnable", DMK president M K Stalin demanded that UP CM Adityanath apologise for the "inhumane treatment" meted out to Gandhi. Rahul alleged that the police lathicharged and pushed him to the ground.
On Wednesday, following a call from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath formed a three-member SIT to investigate the incident and asked it to submit a report within seven days. Facing protests and widespread outrage, the state also said it would set up a fast track court to hear the case. Besides, it announced a compensation of Rs 25 lakh for the victim’s family, a government job for a family member, and a house in Hathras city under the State Urban Development Agency.
The Opposition parties, including the Congress, SP, BSP, and AAP, have targeted the government for the alleged “forced cremation” of the victim.
Hathras gangrape: The funeral pyre of the Hathras victim, hours later. (Express photo: Amil Bhatnagar)
The body of the victim was cremated a little after 3 am Wednesday — with her family saying police had forcibly performed the last rites late at night even though they wanted to bring her body home one last time.
The victim was initially admitted to a district hospital 15 days ago with her tongue cut off and spinal cord severely injured, among other serious injuries. She was later shifted to Aligarh hospital for treatment, before moving to Safdarjung Hospital in the national capital. The police said the victim had been dragged into a field and gangraped. She had also been strangled with her dupatta.
Candle-light protest at Jantar Mantar today.
Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad on Friday lashed out at Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra for displaying political hypocrisy over the horrific alleged rape and killing of a Dalit girl in Hathras district of Uttar Pradesh. Addressing a press conference here, Prasad, who is also a senior BJP leader, questioned the brother-sister duos silence over similar horrific crimes in Congress-ruled Rajasthan while kicking up a storm over the incident in UP where the saffron party is in power. (PTI)
Stating that the “suspicious” action of Uttar Pradesh Police in the Hathras incident has “dented” the image of the BJP and the state government, senior BJP leader Uma Bharti Friday requested Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to allow media and politicians to meet the Dalit victim’s family.
Relating herself as his “elder sister”, Bharti described the UP CM as an “administrator with a clean image”. “I request you to allow media persons and other political parties to meet the aggrieved family,” she tweeted while tagging CM Adityanath.
Uttar Pradesh government on Friday suspended Hathras SP Vikrant Vir, CO Ram Shabd, Inspector Dinesh Meena, SI Jagveer Singh and the head constable, who were probing the alleged gangrape and death of a 19-year-old girl in the village. Shamli Vineet Jaiswal will soon take over that charge of SP.
It is time the country starts fighting the "rape epidemic", Bollywood actor Swara Bhaskar said at the protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi. "People from different groups are here, this shows how enraged people are against what happened in Hathras, Balrampur, Azamgargh...there is a rape epidemic which has spread in the country, especially the kind of news we are getting from Uttar Pradesh," PTI quoted Bhaskar as saying while addressing the protesters.
Left leaders who gathered at the Jantar Mantar in New Delhi included CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury, politburo member Brinda Karat and CPI general secretary D Raja among others. They questioned the silence of the Centre over the issue. "The silence of the central government and the top leadership of the BJP on such a heinous crime and the UP government's response thereafter speaks volumes about the authoritarian and anti-democratic 'chehra', 'chaal', 'charitra', and 'chintan' of the ruling party," PTI quoted Yechury as saying. "The Uttar Pradesh government has no right to stay in power. Our demand is that justice should be served," he added.
BJP leader Uma Bharti has requested UP CM Adityanath to let media and political leaders meet the Hathras victim's family. Stating that had she not been Covid positive at this point of time, she herself would have tried to meet the family, she tweeted, "I request you to allow political leaders, mediapersons to meet Hathras victim's family." She said that considering her seniority in BJP, she believes that Adityanath would keep her request. She said although she cannot call anybody, she gets regular update about the Hathras case through television and feels that the way UP Police has held the victim's family "hostage", whatever be the reason behind the act, can trigger fear among many. "Their suspicious action in Hathras case dented your, state govt and BJP's image."
The entry and exit gates of Metro stations, Rajiv Chowk, Janpath and Patel Chowk are now open. The gates had been shut soon after protests broke out at Jantar Mantar.
Stating that it was wrong to conduct the last rites of the Hathras Dalit victim without the consent of the family, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Friday called on everyone to question the government to seek justice for the victim. “Each and every woman of this country should raise her voice against what has happened to the woman in Hathras,” Priyanka said while addressing a prayer meeting for the victim at Delhi’s Maharashi Valmiki temple. “It was wrong to do so without the consent of the family. We need to put pressure on the government to ensure justice for the young Dalit woman,” she said. “Our country does not have a tradition where the father, brother and the family of the victim are not allowed to light the pyre.”
Atishi cited delayed medical treatment and hurried cremation of the victim's body without her family's permission. "Us bachchi ka balatkaar ek baar nahi hua. Us bachchi ka balatkaar UP ke prashasan ne baar baar kiya hai (That girl was not raped once. She was raped repeatedly by the UP administration).
Congress leader Sushmita Dev demanded resignation of UP CM Yogi Adityanath. "When you compare data of Rajasthan and UP, Congress and BJP, there's the problem. It's not about statistics. It's about how we treat crime against women. It's not about my rape and your rape. Every rape is condemnable. Crystal clear that culpability is with the CM. UP CM must resign. When nirbhaya happened everyone demanded Sheila ji's resignation," she said at Jantar Mantar.
Bhim Army Chief Chandrashekhar Azad, while speaking at Jantar Mantar protest site, said, "The police burnt her (victim's) with petrol even though the family did not give permission. She was burnt like garbage. They have no right to do that."
Yogendra Yadav said that it must not be forgetten that this is a rape of a Dalit woman, and that there were multiple crimes here –– rape, murder and then destruction of evidence. "The body was burnt without the permission of the family. Afterwards, there was a reign of terror against the family, media is barred from entering, and the family is being threatened by the administration. This could not have happened to a woman, who was not Dalit," he said.
Delhi CM Arvind Keriwal said it seems perpetrators in Hathras case are being shielded, this should not happen. He added that the victim's family should be allowed to meet whomever they want and demanded strict action against those responsible for the crime.
Leaders from various political outfits such as Chandrashekhar Azad, Sitaram Yechury, Kanhaiya Kumar, Jignesh Mevani, Sushmita Dev, Atishi, Saurabh Bharadwaj are present at the protest site at Jantar Mantar. There are demands for Yogi's resignation from all, including AAP. However, Kejriwal did not make this demand.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Friday joined the protest at Jantar Mantar where civil society activists, women, students and members of various political parties gathered to demand justice for the Hathras gangrape and murder victim. He said strictest punishment should be given to the perpetrators.
Bhim Army Chief Chandrashekhar Azad joined the protest over Hathras case at Jantar Mantar on Friday. "I will visit Hathras. Our struggle will continue till the time UP CM doesn't resign, & justice is served. I urge SC to take cognizance of the incident," he said.
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi attends prayer meeting for Hathras victim at Delhi's Valmiki temple. "Whatever has happened with the woman, her family faced it alone as they did not get any support from the govt. Our country doesn't have a tradition where the father, brother & the family of the victim aren't allowed to light the pyre," Priyanka said.
Civil society activists, women, students and members of various political parties gathered at the New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on Friday to demand justice for the Hathras gangrape and murder victim. The protest that was initially supposed to be held at the India Gate, was later shifted to the Jantar Mantar owing to the prohibitory orders in place in the Rajpath area. “What is happening in Uttar Pradesh is goondaraj. The police have surrounded the village, are not allowing opposition leaders and mediapersons to enter it. They have taken away the mobile phones of the family members of the victim,” PTI quoted activist and lawyer Prashant Bhushan as saying.
CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury and CPI leader D Raja take part in a protest against Hathras incident, at Jantar Mantar. "The UP government has no right to stay in power. Our demand is that justice should be served," Yechury said.
A day after a senior UP Police officer claimed that the Hathras Dalit woman was not raped, Senior Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala accused the state BJP government of "conspiring" to prove her a "liar". He alleged that the UP authorities tried to "hush up things and forcibly cremated the victim" in the dead of night against Hindu rituals. 'This in itself was a painful incident," he said, adding that the Yogi Adityanath government should "hang its head in shame". (PTI)