Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Tuesday arrived in Delhi to meet Union Minister G Kishan Reddy over state tourism projects. Speculations are rife that Dhami is likely to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the aftermath of the sensational murder case of the 19-year-old receptionist.
The development comes two days after Dhami reviewed the law and order situation and said some recent incidents had tarnished the state’s image. Dhami directed all district magistrates to treat every law and order-related incident with utmost seriousness.
Maintaining law and order and peace in the state is the responsibility of the officials, he said.
Dhami directed officials to identify hotels, resorts and religious places that are built on encroached government or forest lands and crack the whip on them. He also ordered verification of all madrassas in the state.
Five resorts in Dhanachuli area of Nainital district were sealed. Various homestays and resorts were checked by the district administration and it was found that the five resorts were not abiding by the norms.
Furore Over Receptionist’s Death
Relatives of the 19-year-old receptionist allegedly murdered by a BJP leader’s son cremated her Sunday and protesters lifted an eight-hour blockade of a key highway after CM Dhami assured justice.
The victim’s family had initially refused to perform her last rites until they received the final post-mortem report. A preliminary report of an autopsy conducted at AIIMS, Rishikesh, said she died of drowning but there were antemortem injuries (injuries before death) on her body.
The protesters demanded that the perpetrators of the crime be hanged immediately. A section of women at the dharna site also demanded that the accused be handed over to them so that they could be punished appropriately.
Opposition’s Attacks
The Congress on Monday said the silence of PM Modi and all BJP leaders on the murder of the receptionist shows their insensitivity. Addressing a press conference here, state Congress president Karan Mahara questioned the Special Investigation Team (SIT) set up to probe the case and said the party does not have faith in the police investigation.
“It is very shameful. Today, the prime minister, women leaders of the BJP and the entire BJP organisation have been exposed. While the Congress and other parties are protesting against the incident across the state, the BJP, its allies and women leaders are nowhere to be found,” he said.
Rahul Gandhi said, “Crime and arrogance have become synonymous with BJP. No embarrassment, no words, just silence, the Prime Minister’s message is clear – ‘women should not expect anything from me’.”
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said the Uttarakhand government should act with seriousness and sensitivity in the case and demanded that the accused be tried in a fast-track court. She also questioned why the complete post-mortem report was not being given to the family.
“Why is the complete post-mortem report not being given to them? The principle of justice says that the government should act with seriousness and sensitivity.
The parents of the victim should be heard,” she said. Vadra demanded that strict action be taken against those who were negligent in the case. The accused should be tried in a fast-track court and punished, she said.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Saturday termed the murder as extremely shameful and alleged that the crime was the result of the power going into the heads of the BJP leaders.
“Extremely shameful,” the AAP chief spokesperson Saurbah Bharadwaj said when asked for his party’s reaction at a press conference here. He said the murder of the woman receptionist in Uttarkhand was the result of the power going into the heads of the BJP leaders.
“The BJP is so intoxicated in power that even a small leader of the party believes that he rules the country and nobody can restrain him anyway. The power has gone into their heads. That’s the reason,” he charged.
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