Jodhpur, The Chief Minister of Rajasthan state, Ashok Gehlot, has said that the killers of Udaipur tailor Kanhaiya Lal Teli were linked to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
According to Kashmir Media Service, Ashok Gehlot, speaking to reporters, said, had the Special Operations Group (SOG) of the Rajasthan Police handled the case instead of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), the probe would have moved to a logical conclusion.
He said that the Hindutva party was trying to whip up communal tension ahead of the November 25 Assembly elections in the state.
Kanhaiya Lal, a tailor, was beheaded inside his shop in Udaipur by two assailants in broad daylight in Udaipur’s Maldas area on June 28 last year, for posting content in support of suspended BJP leader Nupur Sharma.
The beheading of the Udaipur tailor sent shockwaves and sparked a public outcry.
The case was initially registered at Dhanmondi police station in Udaipur but was later re-registered by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) on June 29, 2022.
“It was an unfortunate incident and I cancelled my scheduled events and left for Udaipur as soon as I learned of it. However, several top leaders of the BJP chose to attend an event in Hyderabad even after learning of the Udaipur incident,” Ashok Gehlot told reporters.
He said the NIA took up the case on the day of the incident and the state government did not raise any objection to it.
“No one knows what action the NIA has taken. If our SOG had pursued the case, the culprits would have been brought to justice by now,” Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot said
The Rajasthan Chief Minister said days before the incident, the assailants were arrested by police in another case and BJP leaders came to the police station to release them.
“The culprits have links to the BJP. Days before the incident, when the police had arrested these accused in some other case and some BJP leaders visited the police station to get them released,” Mr Gehlot said.
“The thing is that BJP has sensed defeat in the elections and are, hence, coming up with bizarre claims. They are not speaking a word about the schemes that we launched and the laws we brought. They just want to stir up trouble ahead of the elections,” the Chief Minister said, adding that the people will give them a befitting reply.
Rajasthan will go to polls on November 25 and the counting of votes will take place on December 3.