Jaipur: Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has made a significant allegation, claiming that the perpetrators behind the beheading of Udaipur tailor Kanhaiya Lal Teli were connected to the BJP.
Gehlot suggests that the BJP is attempting to stoke communal tensions ahead of the upcoming November 25 Assembly elections in the state.
Speaking to reporters during a campaign visit to Jodhpur, Gehlot emphasised that had the Special Operations Group (SOG) of the Rajasthan Police handled the case instead of the National Investigation Agency (NIA), the investigation might have reached a more conclusive outcome, reported ANI.
Kanhaiya Lal Teli, a tailor, was gruesomely beheaded inside his Udaipur shop on June 28 last year. The attackers claimed the act was in response to his alleged support for suspended BJP leader Nupur Sharma, who had faced censure for remarks against the Prophet.
Gehlot highlighted the suspicious timing of the incident, occurring shortly after Sharma's suspension, and asserted that the NIA's involvement has led to uncertainty regarding the progress of the case. He contended that if the state's SOG had been in charge, the culprits might have been brought to justice by now.
"The culprits have links to the BJP. Days before the incident, the police had arrested these accused in some other cases and some BJP leaders visited the police station to get them released. The thing is that the BJP has sensed defeat in the elections and is, 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," said the CM.
The Chief Minister accused the assailants of having BJP connections, citing their prior arrest and alleged intervention by BJP leaders to secure their release. Gehlot linked the BJP's silence on the government's schemes and laws to their attempt to stir trouble before the elections.
In response to Gehlot's allegations, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, during a rally in Chittorgarh, accused the Congress-led government of playing "vote-bank politics" in the Kanhaiya Lal case. The political exchange intensifies as Rajasthan gears up for elections on November 25, with the counting of votes scheduled for December 3.
In the previous 2018 Assembly elections, the Congress secured 99 seats, forming the government with support from the BSP and Independents, while the BJP won 73 seats in the 200-member House.