Janjivan Bureau / Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan today came down heavily on BJP MP Sakshi Maharaj for defending Dera Sacha Sauda chief Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh, who was convicted in a rape case, saying his words exposed the “inhuman face” of the Sangh Parivar.
In a Facebook post, he said, “The BJP leader’s question of who was right whether crores of people who revered Ram Rahim as God or the woman who accused him of rape, was a ‘challenge or cruel mockery’ towards womanhood.”
Maharaj had supported the Dera chief, who was yesterday convicted by a CBI court in a rape case, and had described him as a “simple person” yesterday.
“Sakshi Maharaj, who described a culprit accused of raping a minor girl as a great soul, has exposed the inhuman face of the Sangh Parivar. The attempt to protect the culprit by insulting the victim is a criminal offence,” Vijayan said.
The BJP MP’s question whether the Supreme Court or High Court would ever be ready to punish the Jama Masjid Shahi Imam like this was a “challenge to democracy, blatant expression of communalism and an encouragement to rioters”, he said.
The Chief Minister also alleged that BJP-RSS leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, were supporting Maharaj through their “silence”.
A special CBI court at Panchkula had yesterday convicted the Dera Sacha Sauda chief in a rape case, over 15 years after an anonymous sexual exploitation complaint was registered against him.
The CBI judge Jagdeep Singh while holding the 50-year-old Dera chief guilty of rape had said that the quantum of sentence would be pronounced on August 28.
The maverick godman’s conviction had triggered widespread violence and arson in Haryana, Punjab and some other north Indian states with at least 32 people being killed and 250 injured.
BJD demands Khattar’s resignation over Dera issue
Ruling BJD in Odisha today demanded resignation of Haryana Chief Minister M L Khattar, charging him with being responsible for the violence that erupted following the rape conviction of self-styled godman Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh yesterday
“Haryana Chief Minister Mr Khattar is fully responsible for the violence and must step down,” BJD spokesman P K Deb said.
“The chief minister of Haryana should take moral responsibility and step down in view of the killing of 30 people in the violence,” said Deb, also an MP.
State General Secretary of BJP Prithviraj Harichandan, however, said, “The Dera violence should not be politicised.”
Meanwhile, BJD president and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik said he was pained by the loss of lives in the violence of Haryana and appealed for peace.
“Pained by loss of lives in violence in #Haryana. I condemn the unlawful acts in strongest possible terms and appeal for restoration of peace,” Patnaik tweeted.
