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Amid outrage over the gang rape and murder of two sisters in Uttar Pradesh's Badaun district, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav on Friday assured setting up of a special fast track court to handle the incident.
He has also warned the state police to pull up their socks, and prevent recurrence of such incidents. “No laxity on the part of officials will be tolerated,” he warned. The state government has promised security for the families of the two victims.
Pointedly blaming the ruling Samajwadi Party government for deteriorating law and order, former CM and Bahujan Samajwadi Party supremo Mayawati on Friday demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the incident.
She has also proposed to urge UP Governor B L Joshi to dismiss the two-year old Akhilesh Yadav government for “complete breakdown of law and order.”
Addressing a presser, she said, “The gang rape followed by the brutal killings of two minor girls in Badaun was just another example of the Akhilesh Yadav government’s failure to control the increasing crime across the state; it surely merits a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation.”
“I am going to urge the Governor to dismiss the Akhilesh government,” she said adding, “and let me tell you that even if no action was initiated by the Governor, the SP government was bound to fall within a year.”
Family demands CBI probe
Meanwhile, the family of the two murdered teenage girls on Friday demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the incident, saying they had no faith in local police which was “hand in gloves” with the accused.
The father of the one of the cousin sisters, who was allegedly gang-raped and killed in Katra Sadatganj village on May 27, called for transferring the case to the agency alleging that the role of police was “suspicious”. “The role of police in the entire incident is suspicious. Had the cops acted timely and did not showed laxity, lives of the girls would have been saved. They were hand in gloves with the accused,” said the father of one of the victims.
He added, “The policemen at Katra Sadatganj outpost gave full chance to the accused to commit the crime. We don’t trust the local police now. We want a CBI probe in this matter.”
A team from the National Women Commission also reached the village to get all the relevant information from the villagers about the unfortunate incident.
Blaming police laxity for the horrific gang rape, Union Women and Child Welfare Minister Maneka Gandhi said that a "rape crisis cell" will be constituted for speedy action on such incidents.
Maneka also assured that if the family members of the two girls want, she would recommend a CBI probe into the incident.
"Police laxity is equally responsible for the incident due to which two girls lost their lives. The police is still not acting in the right direction. All policemen involved in the incident should be terminated," she told PTI over phone.
The minister said that she would soon constitute a "rape crisis cell" to ensure speedy action in such matters.
Lambasting the chief minister for “failing on all fronts”, Mayawati then switched to the problem of power cuts in the state. “This government has gone to the extent of harassing the people of the state by deliberately depriving them of normal power supply.”
She sought to know, “when 24-hour power supply was being ensured in privileged areas -- largely constituencies of different members of the ruling Yadav clan -- why the government cannot ensure a bare minimum supply to the rest of the state where people were receiving far better supply during the election period?”
With inputs from PTI
Image: Onlookers sit at the site where two girls were hanged from a tree at Badaun district of Uttar Pradesh. Photograph: Reuters