Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot on Thursday expressed grief over the murder of two Muslim men from Bharatpur allegedly by cow vigilantes from Haryana, and said the victims were abducted and taken to a police station in Haryana, where they should have been provided protection.
After meeting the families of Junaid (35) and Nasir (27) — both cousins — whose bodies were found in a charred vehicle in Bhiwani on February 16, Gehlot termed the incident “barbaric”.
He announced a relief package of ₹5 lakh each for families of the two deceased.
“The incident was heart-wrenching and cannot be explained in words. The way they were abducted and beaten, taken to Haryana police station and were not provided protection there. No one knows what happened next with them, how they were beaten and set on fire…,” Gehlot told reporters at Ghatmika village in Bharatpur.
“The state government will provide ₹5 lakh compensation each to the wives and children of both the deceased. An amount of ₹1 lakh each will be provided as cash whereas a fixed deposit of ₹4 lakh each will be done so that the dependent families do not face any problem in the education and marriage of the kids,” he added.
The families of the deceased had alleged that they were beaten and murdered by members of the Bajrang Dal — a claim rejected by the outfit.
Gehlot said he will talk to his Haryana counterpart Manohar Lal Khattar to take the incident with utmost seriousness.
“It is a big incident and in the same manner is being treated, the police of the state are coordinating. I spoke to the Haryana chief minister, who assured that the accused will be put behind the bars. But despite so many days, the accused couldn’t be caught,” Gehlot said. “On this occasion, I want to appeal to the Haryana CM to take this incident seriously, as the entire country is talking about it.”
He said his government was committed to arresting the accused at the earliest and submit the charge sheet. “The people who are behind such incidents should be sentenced to death,” the Rajasthan CM said.
So far one person has been arrested in the case, while the police have released names and photos of eight others in connection with the case. The FSL report has confirmed that the charred bodies and the blood stains found in the SUV recovered from a cow shelter in Jind in Haryana were of Junaid and Nasir.
HARYANA REACTION HERE