Congress Leaders Prevented from Proceeding to Slain Dalit Leader's Village in UP

Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Ajay Kumar Lallu and other leaders of his party were on Thursday prevented from visiting the family members of slain Dalit head Satyamev Jayate of Basgaon village of Azamgarh district. With a heavy deployment of policemen, Lallu along with Rajya Sabha MP P L Punia and others were prevented from emerging from the Azamgarh Circuit House to proceed to the Basgaon village and were detained there itself, said Congress leaders.

UPCC chief Lallu alleged that the gates of the Circuit House were locked and policemen were deployed in large numbers to stop the Congress leaders from visiting the Dalit leader's village. He launched a scathing attack on the government saying it has adopted an autocratic attitude by preventing people's representatives from visiting the bereaved family.

"The government is out to stop us from visiting the village. Had the number of policemen deployed here were used against criminals, the state would have been free of crime," said Lallu. He added that he would visit the bereaved family irrespective of the consequences.

Rajya Sabha member Punia too lashed at the government saying that it was wrong to stop people representative from meeting the people. "I will raise this matter in the Parliament," Punia said.

Interestingly many Congress leaders, seeking to visit the slain Dalit leader's village, wore blue scarves, a colour representing the Bahujan Samaj Party. Though Congressmen remained tight-lipped over the choice of the colour of their scarves, UPCC media convenor Lalan Kumar asserted that "no party has the copyright over any colour".

"No party has the copyright over any colour. Lalluji wore green mask. Has anyone any objection to it?" he asked. "If Mayawati has any objection, let her issue a statement. She has not even visited the Dalit leader's family so far. She is merely acting as a BJP spokesperson and assisting the saffron in the oppression of Dalits. In fact, it has always been the Congress which had been fighting for Dalits," said Lallan Kumar.

On Friday , 42-year-old Dalit leader Satyamev Jayate alias Pappu, the village head of Basgaon in Tarwan area of Azamgarh district, was shot dead by some miscreants, triggering violence in the area.