Amit Shah's rally cancelled in Bengal, TMC denies any role
Kolxata/New Delhi: BJP chief Amit Shah's scheduled rally in Jadavpur was called off Monday after the West Bengal government, the saffron party claimed, denied him permission to land his chopper and address the public meeting in the Lok Sabha constituency.
Accusing the West Bengal government of "replacing democracy with dictatorship", the BJP said the Election Commission has become a "mute spectator" to the Trinamool Congress's alleged undemocratic means to target the party.
The TMC, however, rebutted the allegations, claiming the BJP had cancelled the rally fearing a low turnout.
"The allegations are completely baseless. We have nothing to do with it. They themselves have cancelled the rally as they were afraid that the rally might turn out to be a flop show," TMC secretary general Partha Chatterjee said.
According to BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya, the district administration had unnecessarily delayed the permission to land Shah's chopper claiming that they were yet to get a clearance from the Public Works Department.
"The district magistrate has been acting as a party cadre of the TMC. They kept on denying us permission for Shah's chopper. Later, they also denied us permission to hold the rally. This is not only undemocratic but also shows the TMC's authoritarian mindset," Vijayvargiya said.
According to Bengal BJP sources, the BJP had planned to go ahead with the Baruipur rally despite the state government's denial of permission, but the land owner, who had rented out his property for the meeting, withdrew his consent at the last minute.
"It was due to pressure from TMC that the owner withdrew his consent," a state BJP leader said.
The party's media head and Rajya Sabha MP Anil Baluni asserted that he along with other workers and members will hold protests and move the EC against TMC's "atrocities".
Following the cancellation of the rally, clashes broke out between the workers of the two rival parties in Baruipur. State BJP chief Dilip Ghosh said his party workers were thrashed by TMC activists.
"TMC activists had been taunting our party men over the cancellation of the rally. When our party workers protested, they were beaten up by the ruling party cadres," he alleged.
Denying the charge, a senior TMC leader said, "The saffron party's claims are bereft of truth. It was the BJP workers that ransacked one of our local offices and attacked our party men."
A state government official said a huge police contingent has been stationed in Baruipur to thwart any untoward incident.
Earlier in the day, senior BJP leader and Union minister Prakash Javadekar said Banerjee's dictatorship is on full play in the state.
"This is murder of democracy. The EC should take cognizance of the matter. If important leaders are not allowed to hold rallies, what is the meaning of elections," he told reporters in New Delhi.
Javadekar also slammed the state police for arresting a BJP youth-wing worker, who shared a social media post mocking Banerjee.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Delhi: Father, son held for killing 19-year-old woman in suspected honour killing
New Delhi (PTI): The Delhi Police has arrested a man and his son for allegedly murdering his 19-year-old daughter in west Delhi's Hari Nagar area, an official said on Friday.
The case first came to light on April 1 after a PCR call was received around 2 pm, alleging that a woman had been killed by her family members and her body was being taken for last rites, he said.
The accused, identified as Mohammad Maneer (55), a vegetable vendor, and his son Meraj Ali (19), were arrested in connection with the case, the officer said.
The victim had been in a relationship with a man from her native place for the past two years, which was opposed by her father, Maneer and brother Meraj, he said.
"When the girl did not end the relationship despite objections, the family killed her," the officer said.
On April 1, the police said that when their team reached the spot, they found that the woman's body was being taken for burial.
Acting on the input, the burial process was stopped over suspicion of honour killing.
"Police intercepted the family members and took possession of the body," he said.
Police said that the man who had made the PCR told them that the woman was in love with his cousin.
During the inquiry, police also interacted with the PCR caller, who said his cousin, a friend of the deceased, had informed him about the situation and suspected foul play, prompting him to alert the police control room.
The body of the woman was subsequently shifted to the mortuary of Deen Dayal Upadhyay Hospital for preservation and postmortem.
Police said that both the crime team and the forensic science laboratory (FSL) team were called to inspect the scene and collect evidence.
Police said that, as per the postmortem report, the cause of death was identified as smothering, indicating that the woman was suffocated.
A preliminary inquiry also revealed that the family had initiated preparations for the last rites soon after the woman's death, raising suspicion about the circumstances.
Initial investigation pointed to the family's opposition to the woman's relationship.
"The family members of the woman saw her with the man, and she was taken back home. We got to know that she was beaten up and even locked inside the house for some days," a source said.
Further investigation into the matter is underway, police added.
