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With the Madhya Pradesh police planning to meet him in connection with the death of Right To Information activist Shehla Masood in Bhopal last month, Bharatiya Janata Party Member of Parliament Tarun Vijay on Friday said the activist was a good friend and that he is willing to offer all possible assistance to the investigating agencies.
Masood was shot dead in her car outside her home in Bhopal on August 16 when she was reportedly about to head to a rally in the Madhya Pradesh capital city to support social activist Kisan Baburao Hazare's campaign against corruption.
In a statement issued on Friday, Vijay said: 'Shehla, through her company Miracles, had worked for our organisation, Dr Syama Prasad Mookerjee Research Foundation, helping events in Srinagar, Kolkata and New Delhi. She was a brave RTI activist and a friend who helped in the tiger conservation and environment protection movement.'
'In fact, the day Anna Hazare was arrested, we spoke on the phone at about 9.30 am about it. I am deeply saddened by her murder and have full sympathies with her family which is passing through a difficult time. Every right thinking Indian will stand by them and will not take rest till the culprits are booked and justice is done to Shehla.'
Vijay, who is also a BJP spokesperson, added: 'The police is naturally seeking and gathering information from all those who knew her as a friend. Whenever the MP police seeks information from me, I shall be too willing to share all that I knew about her and help every effort to get the culprits caught. I hope that this serious challenge to the civil rights movement would not be politicised by anyone.'