Bharatiya Janata Party MP Sanjeev Balyan, one of the leaders accused of inciting the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, claimed that district administrations never want cases to be withdrawn but the Uttar Pradesh government will take the final decision on such matters, The Indian Express reported on Sunday.
Balyan was responding to reports that said Muzaffarnagar District Magistrate Rajeev Sharma had told the state that he is against withdrawing cases against BJP leaders accused of inciting riots.
“I want the cases to be withdrawn,” Balyan, the MP from Muzaffarnagar, was quoted as saying. “Request was made [by the government] to withdraw fake cases of arson lodged by police.” He said a case against him was fake, but added that he does not want it to be withdrawn because he is capable of fighting it legally. “I will get justice from the court,” he told the newspaper.
BJP legislator Sangeet Som, who is also accused of inciting riots, said: “Cases which are genuine will not be withdrawn. Certainly, a few cases will be genuine. Those cases which are fake will be withdrawn.”
Just months after the Bharatiya Janata Party came into power in Uttar Pradesh, the state government had requested the district magistrate in January for his opinion on the withdrawal of 133 cases, 89 of which are pending in court. The remaining have either resulted in acquittals or closure reports have been filed. Pending cases include those related to hate speech, murder, attempt to murder, arson and dacoity.
On Sunday, The Indian Express reported that Sharma, along with the senior superintendent of police and the prosecuting officer, have replied to the state government, saying they are against the withdrawal of these cases because of “administrative reasons”.
Sharma is believed to have told the government that most of the cases are pending in courts, Deccan Herald reported.
A local court on December 24, 2017, dismissed non-bailable warrants against minister Suresh Rana, Sangeet Som, and Bijnor MP Bhartendra Singh in a riot case. The warrants were issued on November 15 after the state government approved the decision to prosecute the legislators.
On January 8, Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik approved eight bills, including one that seeks to drop 20,000 “politically motivated” cases filed across the state. One such case was against Chief Minister Adityanath.
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