Last Updated: June 16, 2023, 22:31 IST
The Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu-led Congress government has accused the opposition of trying to score points on the issue. (Pic/News18)
In the suspected case of ‘honour killing’, a young man, believed to be in a relationship with a woman belonging to a minority community, was murdered. His body was cut into eight pieces and dumped in a bag before being disposed of in a sewer
The murder of a Dalit youth in Salooni area of Himachal Pradesh’s Chamba district has sparked a political controversy with the Bharatiya Janata Party seeking a probe by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) into the incident even as the Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu-led Congress government has accused the opposition of trying to score points on the issue.
In the suspected case of ‘honour killing’, a young man, believed to be in a relationship with a woman belonging to a minority community, was murdered. His body was cut into eight pieces and dumped in a bag before being disposed of in a sewer.
The victim had been missing since June 6. His body was recovered three days later.
The recovery of the mutilated body led to protests and a mob of around 1,000 even torched the house of the family suspected to be behind the killing.
The murder took on a political colour with the BJP planning to hold dharnas across Himachal Pradesh even as the state government accused the opposition of trying to create a controversy over a heinous crime.
Cabinet ministers Jagat Singh Negi, Rohit Thakur, and Anirudh Singh in a joint statement on Friday lambasted the opposition for “playing politics” on the murder of the youth. “It is very unfortunate that the BJP is trying to flare up the issue despite the fact that the accused has been arrested and law and order agencies are investigating the case,” they said.
According to the ministers, the police after lodging an FIR immediately arrested the culprits and were probing the incident but the opposition was unnecessarily trying to hinder the investigation and also creating law and order problems by gathering in large numbers despite section 144 imposed and trying to disturb harmony and peace.
They said the government was committed to providing justice to the family members of the deceased but the opposition was indulging in cheap tactics for its ulterior motives.
State BJP chief Rajeev Bindal said that the party will hold dharna at all district headquarters and submit a memorandum to the governor through the deputy commissioners.
Former chief minister Jai Ram Thakur along with other BJP leaders tried to march towards the village but were stopped. They later held a dharna near the village and demanded an NIA probe into the incident.
