Bulandshahr gangrape: BJP demands Akhilesh Yadav's resignation, calls for CBI enquiry

After the brutal gang rape of a 35-year-old woman and her 14-year-old daughter by dacoits, last Saturday near Dostpur in Bulandshahr, the residents have claimed that this was not a lone incident to have occurred in the area.

According to the villagers, just 12 days ago, a few men had brought a woman in a tempo and gang raped her late in the night, reported The Times Of India .

The report further says that according to the locals, cases of theft have become commonplace in this deserted area. A village elder alleged that reports in the area happen so often, but most of the cases go unreported. He also blamed the police’s lackadaisical approach in handling crime, which has lead to an increase in these incidents of criminals targeting travellers.

Police sources told TOI that “two similar incidents” had occurred in the district on 7 May and 12 May this year. Travellers were robbed and assaulted at gunpoint. However, the police had registered these as cases of normal theft and no arrests had been made.

Meanwhile, the BJP on Tuesday demanded a CBI probe into the gang-rape in Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh.

“The (Uttar Pradesh) government has failed to take action in the shameful and painful incident. Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav should resign as he has failed to govern the state. Such incidents have also happened in the past,” Keshav Maurya, BJP’s Uttar Pradesh chief, told reporters.

“The party and the central government stand by the family. We will meet Union Home Minister (Rajnath Singh) and demand a CBI probe into the incident,” he added.

Following the outrage that the incident generated, the  India Today  said that the UP government has also decided to raise a special police force, which will patrol the highways to ensure safety of travellers. The DGP of UP Javeed Ahmed has said that instructions have already been given and the process to identify highways that are prone to crime and where gangs are known to operate is already underway.

Five people have been arrested in the case and four top cops have been suspended so far_._

As per the report, while special teams have been tasked to probe the incident on a fast-track mode, Javed Ahmed had told reporters on Sunday, at a press conference in Bulandshahr, that any other officers found guilty of inaction will face similar charge_s._

BJP has also panned the UP government over the incident. Union Minister Mahesh Sharma demanded that Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav should step down after such a “shameful incident”.

“When will this end? It shows that the state government has collapsed on every front. They cannot save the honour of a daughter. It is shameful and they should step down,” Sharma said.

Meanwhile, the UP police have recovered a gold chain, an anklet and Rs 5,000 from the arrested culprits of the Bulandshahr rape case, all of which reportedly belonged to the rape survivors, as reported by IG (Law and Order) HR Sharma to The Daily Tribune .

Uttar Pradesh Cabinet minister Mohammad Azam Khan on Tuesday worsened the matters further by alleging that a “ political conspiracy ” might be involved in the gang rape.

Reacting sharply to the statement, state BJP General Secretary Vijay Bahadur Pathak said it was shameful that a senior minister could make such outrageous statements.

As per the Firstpost report, the gangrape occurred on Saturday night, when a 35-year-old woman and her 14-year-old daughter were allegedly waylaid by a group of dacoits. According to the police, the family’s car was stopped on NH 91, the women dragged out of the vehicle, and the family robbed at gun point. The entire incident lasted over three hours.