Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut alleged double standards in reactions to sadhus murder (archive)
Mumbai:
The Shiv Sena today called for double standards by the media in its response to the fatal attacks on Sadhus, claiming that those deaths were described as “adharma (injustice) “when they occur in Maharashtra but are branded as” incidents “elsewhere.
Referring to the killing of two sadhus in the Palghar state district in April, the leader of the Seine, Sanjay Raut, claimed that similar incidents in other parts of the country were not viewed with the same fervor.
“Two sadhus were killed by a mob in Palghar and this incident caused a furor in the country. In the last four days, four sadhus were killed in UP and one in Rajasthan. In Rajasthan, the priest was burned to death. Nothing happened, “Mr. Raut wrote in an editorial in the party spokesman”Saamana“.
“The media are in such a situation that when the Palghar incident happened it is”adharma“And if this happens in other places, then it is just an incident. How is this possible?” I ask.
The deputy from the Seine was referring to the attacks on sadhus reported from UP and Rajasthan this month.
In Rajasthan, a priest died of burns after a group of men attacked him over a dispute over land. Police detained two men and named three more to a FIR.
However, an alleged attack on a sadhu in UP’s Gonda district on Saturday night was revealed to be a conspiracy hatched by the priest himself. Police said the priest had hired a professional shooter to wound him in an attempt to frame a political rival for the attack.
This is not the first time that the Seine has alleged mixed reactions to the deaths of holy men.
In April, shortly after the Palghar attack, Sena leader Priyanka Chaturvedi claimed that some media channels broadcast “factless (and) hate-inducing debates” in response to “a video of the alleged crime” that appeared on line.
Earlier this week, Republic TV director Arnab Goswami was charged with instigating community tension in connection with the attack.
Meanwhile, today Mr. Raut also attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Interior Minister Amit Shah, whom he labeled “Krishna” and “Arjuna”, for not following hisdharma“and protecting sadhus across the country.
“The rulers who present themselves today as Krishna and Arjuna – Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Interior Minister Amit Shah. They are expected to do the work of establishing.”dharma“to overcome the crisis in the country,” he said.
The Palghar killings sparked a massive political dispute and the Uddhav Thackeray government has been harshly criticized for its handling of the case. Since then, multiple petitions have been filed in the Supreme Court, alleging police inaction and demanding an investigation by the IWC.
In April, after the men accused of the murder were arrested, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray spoke with Amit Shah to assure him that he would take action in the case. Thackeray said the interior minister “knows there is no common angle … I told him that we must seek out those stirring passions.”
The sadhus were beaten to death by a mob after rumors that children were being abducted to remove organs. It was one of a series of similar incidents triggered by WhatsApp rumor and fake news forwards.
In July, the Maharashtra Criminal Investigation Department filed a charge sheet against 126 defendants.
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