Congress for judicial probe against rape-accused BSP lawmaker

LUCKNOW - The Congress Sunday demanded a judicial probe against a Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) legislator of Uttar Pradesh accused of raping a minor girl, terming as an “eyewash” Chief Minister Mayawati’s decision to suspend him from her party and order a CID inquiry.

Uttar Pradesh Congress president Rita Bahuguna Joshi demanded a high-level judicial probe against BSP legislator Purshottam Narain Dwivedi who is set to face a Criminal Investigation Department (CID) inquiry for his alleged involvement in the gangrape in Banda district.

“The suspension of the rogue MLA is just an eyewash and the CID inquiry was clearly intended to save the MLA from being arrested,” Joshi said in a statement issued here Sunday.

“This is not a simple case; it is a very serious matter involving gangrape and illegal confinement of a minor girl belonging to one of the most backward communities by none other than a ruling party MLA,” Joshi said.

“I feel the poor victim could get justice only if the probe was entrusted to a sitting high court judge,” Joshi said.

She also demanded the transfer of the superintendent of police who was allegedly responsible for preventing registration of a first information report (FIR) by the victim’s father.

Congress legislator from Banda Vivek Kumar Singh, who has been staging a sit-in demonstration against the heinous crime, has accused the superintendent of police (SP) of “acting as a BSP worker”.

“The SP not only went inside the jail where the girl was lodged after being implicated by the MLA in a false case of theft, but he even forcibly took her thumb impression on blank sheets of paper, obviously to cook up false evidence against her,” he said.

On Saturday, the chief minister ordered a police inquiry into the allegations of gangrape and illegal confinement of the victim by Dwivedi, who represents Banda constituency, and his supporters.

The girl, belonging to the Dalit community, accused Dwivedi and his henchmen of not only subjecting her to gangrape but also implicating her in a theft case.

Dwivedi accused her of stealing his licenced revolver and Rs.5,000 from his house, for which she was lodged in a jail in Banda, 180 km from here.

Mayawati got into action only after the issue was raised by Joshi and Samajwadi Party president Mulayam Singh Yadav, who charged her with shielding criminals in her party.