PTI, LUCKNOW: Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday broke his silence on Kasganj violence promising action against those involved even as politics brewed over the clashes with Union minister Giriraj Singh claiming that media would have chosen a “different” line if the killed youth was from the minority community.
Another BJP hardliner Vinay Katiyar, known for his
controversial utterances, also waded in the row saying there were some “miscreants who support Pakistan” who could go toany extent to defy the tricolour.
“Our government is committed to provide security to each and every citizen. Anarchy has no place in the state,” Chief Minister Adityanath told reporters here, his first comments onthe clashes.
Adityanath warned of “strict action” against the perpetrators of violence.
Meanwhile, Union Minister Giriraj Singh said that he felt the violence was pre-planned.
“Had the deceased been Mohammad Ismaayil instead of Chandan Gupta, there would be been a different debate in the media… We have to change this mindset,” Giriraj Singh toldreporters here.
The Union minister said he felt the Kasganj incident was “pre-planned” adding that the Adityanath government would not spare anyone involved.
Giriraj Singh also referred to Bareilly District Magistrate Raghvendra Vikram Singh’s comments on Facebook that appeared to blame right-wing groups for provoking communal clashes.
“I have come to know that a bureaucrat has made some remarks on why some are raising ‘Pakistan Murdabad’ slogans. I want to ask why not raise Pakistan Murdabad slogan. We raise this slogan as Pakistan kills our soldiers and is involved in spreading cross border terrorism,” the minister said.
The DM’s now-deleted post said a “strange trend” that had begun of late was to visit Muslim majority areas and raise slogans against Pakistan.
“Why? Are they (Muslims) Pakistanis?” The same thing had happened in Khailam village of Bareilly. Then stones were thrown, FIRs lodged,” the officer’s post had said.
A short service commission Army officer before joining the civil services, Raghvendra Vikram Singh, 59, was last year posted as the district magistrate of Bareilly, about 100 km from Kasganj.
He put up the Facebook post on Sunday, just two days after 22-year-old commerce student Chandan Gupta died in communal clashes that broke out in a Muslim-majority locality of Kasganj during a ‘Tiranga bike rally’ by members of the local unit of the RSS-affiliated students’ group ABVP.
Minister of State for Food Processing Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti said the incident should not be politicised.
BJP MP Vinay Katiyar, however, told a news channel that those who “support Pakistan” were behind the violence. “Earlier, there were no communal clashes in Kasganj district as all lived in harmony. But it has come to light that there are some miscreants who support Pakistan and will go to any extent to defy the tricolour. They need to be dealt
with strictly,” he said.
Katiyar claimed Gupta, who died of a bullet injury, was killed by the “supporters of Pakistan”. “Nothing like this had happened in the state under Yogi Adityanath’s government, this is a first such incident which has taken place,” Katiyar asserted expressing confidence that action will be taken.
