The Supreme Court issued a notice to Maharashtra Government, acting on a PIL, which alleged that North Indians were no longer safe in Mumbai and other parts of Maharashtra. The PIL also accused the state government of not doing anything to the rights of non-Marathi people. The court asked the Maharashtra government to ensure safety and security of non-Marathi people.
Maharastra is nolonger safe for north- indians. Now its time to unite non-Marathi people for better counter attack on Marathi Banmanoos.
The BJP on Thursday demanded a CBI inquiry into the killing of Bihar youth Rahul Raj in a shootout with Mumbai Police, saying there were indications of “foul play” in the incident.
“The post-mortem report and the comments of the medical experts clearly indicate that there was foul play in the killing of the youth. Our party demands a CBI inquiry into the incident so that the truth is known,” party spokesperson Rajiv Pratap Rudy told reporters here.
Asked if the party would follow suit of ally JD(U) which has asked its MPs to resign over the issue, Rudy said, “resignation can never be a solution.”
“It is time for all of us to keep aside our political priorities to ensure peace in society and security of North Indians in Maharashtra,” he said.
“We differ on the approach with our ally JD(U) on resignation. The JD(U) has taken this decision without any consultation,” he added.
Raj, a resident of Patna, was killed in a shootout with the police after he held a bus with 12 passengers hostage in Mumbai suburb Kurla on October 27. The killing sparked a furore with several parties demanding a judicial probe into the incident.
The autopsy of the youth was performed at the J J Hospital and was recorded on video before the body was sent to Patna for cremation. A doctor involved in the autopsy has said one of the bullets may have been fired from a close range.
Maharashtra Chief Secretary Johny Joseph is conducting an independent probe into the incident while the Mumbai Police Crime Branch is also carrying out an internal inquiry.
The Supreme Court will hear a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking a judicial inquiry in the alleged encounter of Bihar youth Rahul Raj by Mumbai Police.
The PIL filled in the apex court also seeks a judicial probe into the alleged lynching of a UP labourer Dharam Rai, while he was travelling on a train in Badlapur in Maharashtra.
Earlier today, the autopsy conducted by a four-member panel of forensic experts at J J Hospital in Mumbai on Thursday confirmed that Rahul Raj was shot from very close range.
The panel of doctors which conducted the post mortem on Raj revealed that there were five bullet entry wounds on his body, all in the chest and head region. However, there were only four exit wounds as one bullet was recovered from the body.
The experts also confirmed that at least 12-13 rounds of bullets were fired by the Mumbai Police team in a bid to end the BEST bus hijack drama.
The autopsy report has not been made official and the panel of doctors will shortly submit it to the government.
The findings of the post-mortem could complicate things for the Maharashtra government and Mumbai Police, which is already under scanner for allegedly killing the 23-year-old youth from Bihar.
The finding is also expected to give credence to the allegations levelled by the Bihar government and Rahul Raj’s parents that Mumbai Police could have easily captured him, and there was no need to kill him.
The Additional Commissioner of Police Mumbai Sadanand Date had earlier supported the stand taken by the cops and warned that anybody trying to take law in his hands would also meet the same result.
Rahul Raj was killed by Mumbai Police when he tried to take a BEST bus hostage on gun point in order to send a strong message to MNS Chief Raj Thackeray for his party’s treatment to the North Indians.
The incident draw sharp reactions Bihar CM Nitish Kumar, who alleged that it was wrong to shoot down Raj could and he could have been caught alive.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh also spoke to the Maharashtra CM, Vilas Rao Deshmukh, and asked him to insure the safety of all sections so that incidents like this are not repeated in the future.
My son was shot in fake encounter: Rahul’s father
Reacting to the autopsy report of Rahul Raj, his father today reiterated that the report vindicated his claim that his son was killed in a fake encounter.
“I have been saying from day one that my son was captured and then shot from point blank range. The forensic report of the J J hospital, Mumbai, has vindicated my stand. The Centre should now dismiss the Maharashtra government,” Singh, told reporters.
Questioning the Centre that how many more Biharis do it wants to be killed in Maharashtra before taking a firm action he said, “the policemen involved in the encounter had worn bullet-proof jackets and could have easily overpowered my son, who I don’t know from where procured the gun.”
Singh thanked the hospital authorities for making public an “impartial and unbiased forensic report despite being under tremendous pressure.”
“If the Centre does not take action against the perpetrators of the crime and the Maharashtra government, lakhs of Rahul Raj are prepared to make supreme sacrifice to secure justice,” he asserted.
The Nasik court sent Sadhvi Pragya Singh, a prime accused in the Malegaon bomb blast case, to judicial custody till November 17. Two other accused Shiv Narayan and Shyamlal Sahu were also sent to judicial custody.
The Mumbai ATS arrested three other persons in connection with the blasts. They were remanded to police custody till November 10. The police claimed that one of the arrested, Ajay Raikar financed the terror group, which was involved in the Malegaon bomb blast. Six imported weapons were recovered from Ajay Raikar, the treasurer of Abhinav Bharat. Mumbai ATS is likely to conduct another narco test on Pragya Singh. It could be recalled that narco test and brain mapping conducted on Sadhvi Pragya Singh produced no results.
“I will speak when I get justice.”, said Pragya in the court. Sadhvi Pragya Singh Thakur, argued her own case in the court. Pragya told the court that she and the two others arrested along with her were innocent and were being framed as part of a game plan to defame Hindutva movement. She also alleged torture by ATS officials during her interrogation before and after her formal arrest.
Meanwhile, hundreds of Shiv Sena, BJP, Hindu Maha Sabha and Abhinav Bharat workers shouted slogans against the Maharashtra government and Mumbai ATS outside the Nasik court. They also shouted slogans in favour of Sadhvi Pragya Singh. Shiv Sena has accused that UPA government is hatching a conspiracy to defame the Hindu organizations. RSS and BJP also came out in open to support Pragya Singh and questioned the theories of Mumbai ATS.
The Maharashtra government has sent a preliminary report to the Home Ministry confirming that the man hailing from Uttar Pradesh was beaten to death on the train.
Deputy Chief Minister R R Patil has said his government is taking all possible steps to check the violence and will take stern action against the offenders.
Maharashtra government has announced a compensation of Rs two lakh for the family of Dharamdev Rai, a UP labourer beaten to death on Mumbai local train.
Twelve people have been detained for questioning in connection with the labourer’s killing. Railway police have begun probe into the case. They have said that some of the assailants were speaking in Marathi. Maharashtra DGP has sent a report to the Centre on the case.
Meanwhile, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati has asked the Centre for a probe into the killing of Rai.
The post mortem report of the UP youth, who was beaten to death on Mumbai local train, shows he died of injuries to the liver.
Home Minister Shivraj Patil has spoken to Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh and Deputy Chief Minister on migrant’s death.
“We are taking all possible steps to check the violence. Violence on train falls under Railway police and stern action is being taken against the offenders. It is very difficult to check stray incidents of violence. We are in touch with Centre on Maharashtra violence,” said Vilasrao Deshmukh, Chief Minister, Maharashtra.
“We’ve registered a case of murder and are conducting an investigation. We take full responsibility of the safety of UP, Bihar migrants in Mumbai, ” said RR Patil, Deputy Chief Minister, Maharashtra told NDTV.
Earlier, Rai, a young man from Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh died after he was severely beaten on a suburban train in Badlapur in Maharashtra. He was on his way home to Gorakhpur for Diwali.
Three of his friends who were travelling with him were also beaten. They rushed Dharamdev to a hospital where he was declared dead.
“If the government here wants, please help us move out of Maharashtra today itself. We don’t want to live here. How will you then earn a living? I will do something at home. Nobody dies of hunger in UP. I have passed Intermediate, couldn’t get a job there, so came here for a private job. I earn Rs 5,000 a month and if I don’t get a new job, I will do farming,” said Brahmadev Rai, brother of Dharmadev Rai.
One of the victim’s friends has claimed they were attacked by a group of Marathi speaking youth who abused them for taking up jobs in Mumbai.
“We were four of us. We took the train from Khopoli. Some people boarded the train on the way and started asking us questions, then they started abusing and beating us. They said why do you come to Mumbai for jobs? We kept saying we are going home for Diwali and we apologised but they paid little heed to it. My friend fell unconscious. As the train slowed down they jumped off. Police asked us to get off at Badlapur and we were brought to Dubey Hospital. But my friend was declared brought dead,” said Shivkumar Verma, one of the victims who was beaten up.
On its part, the BJP has blamed the Congress for propping up Raj Thackeray whose campaign against north Indians have led to the lynching.
The Union Cabinet meeting yesterday witnessed some heated discussions over Maharahstra Navnirman Sena and its chief Raj Thackeray. Many ministers demanded tough action against MNS chief Raj Thackeray for vitiating the peaceful atmosphere in the state and even asked the Centre to arrest him under NSA (National Security Act). They also demanded a judicial probe into the killing of two youths from Bihar and UP in Maharashtra.
Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh expressed deep concerns over the situation in Maharashtra and revealed that he had already written a strong-worded letter to Maharashtra Chief Minister Vilasrao Deshmukh to take tough action against Raj Thackeray.
The UPA seemed to be divided on Maharashtra, as senior ministers from the state Sharad Pawar, Praful Patel and AK Antulay skipped the meeting. The UPA allies were not convinced at Home Minister Shivraj Patil’s statement that Centre has already sent three advisories to the Maharashtra government.
The killing of UP migrant Dharamdev Rai by a group of Marathi youth in a local train in Mumbai, has taken a political turn, with UP Chief Minister Mayawati seeking the Prime Minister’s intervention on this matter. Mayawati announced a compensation of Rs. 2 lakh for the family of Dharamdev Rai, who hailed from Gorakhpur district in Uttar Pradesh.
Meanwhile, UPA allies Lalu Prasad Yadav and Ram Vilas Paswan have demanded stern against MNS chief Raj Thackeray and Maharashtra government. Without naming any state, Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav threatened to suspend train movement in states where rail passengers and properties are repeatedly attacked. The Railway Minister announced a compensation of Rs. 3 lakh for Dharamdev Rai’s family.
Both Lalu and Paswan slammed the Maharashtra government over the growing attacks against North Indians. Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh, whose party is supporting the UPA government at the Centre, has decided to take on the Maharashtra government and chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh.
Voice of Bihar 