Body of Dadri MURDER ACCUSED kept under tricolour; Rs 1-cr demanded

Dadri, Oct 7: The Hindutva activists and family members of one of the accused in Dadri lynching, who died of fever earlier this week, have refused to cremate the dead body unless the Uttar Pradesh government pays Rs 1 crore as compensation, recommends a CBI probe into his death and fulfils other demands.

Less than a kilometre from where Mohammad Akhlaq was lynched last year over beef allegation, hundreds of Bisara residents gathered on Thursday around a deep-freezer casket draped with the Tricolour. The casket contained the body of 21-year-old Ravin Sisodia, an accused in Akhlaq's killing, who died at LNJP Hospital in Delhi Tuesday evening.

Sisodia's family members have also demanded the state government to take action against officers at a Greater Noida jail, where the notorious murder accused had been lodged, and to arrest Akhlaq's brother, Jaan Mohammad, on charges of “cow slaughter.”

The district police, meanwhile, turned the village into a veritable fortress with VHP leader Sadhvi Prachi visiting Bisara on Thursday to express her solidarity with Sisodia's family. Two companies of Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) have been deployed, and extra security forces from Gautam Budh Nagar, Bulandshahr and Ghaziabad brought in.

By Thursday evening, talks between the administration and a 11-member committee of Bisara residents, including family members of Ravin, hit a roadblock on two issues — the arrest of Mohammad and compensation for Ravin's family.

While village residents maintained that a meeting of residents from nearby villages will be called on Friday morning, the local administration maintained that efforts to negotiate with Bisara residents and Ravin's father would continue.

“They have said that the body will not be cremated if Mohammad is not arrested. They also did not agree to accept the Rs 10 lakh that was being offered by the state government as compensation and demanded Rs 1 crore. We are trying to reach out to Ravin's family. For now, they have refused to cremate him,” said a senior police officer.

“If our demands are not met, the cremation will not take place. The administration has given us some assurances but we are not satisfied. Our main aim is Mohammad's arrest and unless that happens, we will not cremate the body,” said Hari Om, the husband of Bisara pradhan Kaushalya Devi.

Earlier, addressing the residents, Sadhvi Prachi said, “All those in the government have deep love for topiwallahs…these people exploit you. Teach them a lesson.” Asking “Hindus” to unite, and referring to the Muzaffarnagar riots, Prachi said, “Dadri ko Uttar Pradesh sarkar Muzaffarnagar kand na banaye (The UP government should not turn Dadri into a Muzaffarnagar-like incident).”

Gautam Budh Nagar police said they would initiate action against Prachi for making inflammatory statements. Dharmendra Singh, SSP, said, “We are recording the events on video. If any person gives provocative speeches and tries to disturb peace there, strict legal action will be taken. But since a dead body has been kept there and a lot of people are visiting to console the family and friends, we are allowing people to enter the village.”

On September 28 last year, a Hindutva mob attacked 50-year-old Akhlaq, dragging him outside his house and beating him to death while his younger son 22-year-old Mohammad Danish received severe head injuries, according to police.

The mob assembled outside Akhlaq's house minutes after an announcement in the village which asked residents to assemble since a cow had allegedly been slaughtered in the village, police had said.

Also Read: Amidst demand for his release, fever kills Dadri lynching accused