After the landlord of the men accused of killing a Udaipur tailor had complained to the police about them, the Bharatiya Janata Party told the officers not to take action, alleged Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot on Monday, The Indian Express reported.
“Recently it was found that the accused lived in a rented place, owned by another Muslim person,” Gehlot said. “He [landlord] complained to the police that they [accused] were troubling him…Some people used to come to his house, threaten him, and also he didn’t get rent. Before the police could act, BJP leaders called the police station saying that he is our worker and don’t bother him.”
Gehlot made the allegations during a press conference with Opposition presidential candidate Yashwant Sinha in Jaipur.
He added that the relationship of the accused persons with the BJP was known to everyone.
Kanhaiya Lal was killed on June 28 purportedly for having shared a social media post in support of suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma. She made disparaging remarks about Prophet Muhammad during a television debate in May.
Lal’s assailants, Ghouse Mohammed and Mohammed Riyaz Attari were held by the Rajasthan Police on the same day. A video showed both the men claiming responsibility for the crime as they brandish the cleavers used in the murder.
On June 29, the National Investigation Agency took over the case from the Rajasthan Police. The case was re-registered under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.
On Monday, Gehlot asked BJP to issue a clarification on the “connection” of the accused with the party, NDTV reported.
The BJP, however, refuted the allegations saying they were baseless.
“If the Chief Minister has such evidence with him that the accused are associated with any leaders of the BJP, then why he is sitting quietly?” BJP MLA Rajendra Rathore said, according to The Indian Express. “He [Gehlot] also has ATS [Anti-Terror Squad] and other security agencies at his disposal. These types of baseless statements reduce the seriousness of the matter.”
On July 2, photographs of Attari had surfaced on social media with BJP leaders, including the Leader of Opposition Gulab Chand Kataria.
This had prompted the Congress to allege that Attari was a BJP worker. The saffron party had denied these allegations.
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