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Journalism of Courage
A day after a key witness in the 2005 case of the murder of BSP MLA Raju Pal was shot dead in Prayagraj, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath faced off with Leader of Opposition Akhilesh Yadav in the UP Assembly Saturday.
Adityanath accused the SP of sheltering “criminals” and “mafia” like jailed former MP Atiq Ahmed, an accused in the 2005 case, and said he would destroy the mafia (“iss mafia ko mitti me mila denge”).
Lawyer Umesh Pal, the witness in the case, was shot dead and two policemen were critically injured Friday when unidentified men fired and hurled crude bombs at them in the Dhoomanganj area of Prayagraj. Lodged in a Gujarat jail, Atiq Ahmed, according to police, is also an accused in the 2006 kidnapping of Umesh Pal.
As the House assembled Saturday morning for a discussion on the Governor’s address, the SP raised the Prayagraj incident to question the law and order situation in the state.
The Chief Minister said it was an unfortunate incident and the government had taken cognizance of it. He said the results of actions taken by the government under its policy of “zero-tolerance” for crime will be before everyone very soon.
He then turned towards Akhilesh Yadav and the SP members: “Who sheltered the mafia and criminals? You first shelter criminals and garland them. And later, you stage a drama and level allegations at others.”
“Iss House mein keh raha hoon. Iss mafia ko mitti me mila denge… Jitney mafia hain unko mitti me milane ka kaam karenge (I am saying this in the House. This mafia will be destroyed, all mafia will be destroyed),” he said, referring to Ahmed.
Akhilesh Yadav countered him, saying “In my party? Why don’t you say which party he belongs to? Since you have a friendship with the BSP, you are not taking its name.” He was apparently referring to Ahmed’s wife joining the BSP recently.
Adityanath said Ahmed, against whom the victim’s family had lodged an FIR on Saturday, was a “mafia nurtured by the Samajwadi Party” and it was the BJP government that had taken action against him – “uski kamar todne ka kaam kiya”.
As SP MLAs trooped into the well of the House against the CM’s remarks and Akhilesh Yadav protested, Speaker Satish Mahana said, “What is wrong if the remark is on destroying the mafia? The mafia should be destroyed, whoever it is. The entire state will like that.”
Yadav said he too wants the mafia destroyed. “But what is this language? Mitti me mila denge… The law will send the guilty to jail. We cannot,” he said, and demanded a discussion in the House Monday on the law and order situation.
