Riots cases: UP govt seeks status report

MUZAFFARNAGAR: The state government has sought the status reports of 131 cases related to Muzaffarnagar and Shamli riots from the district administration along with the district magistrate and SSP’s opinion on withdrawal of these cases in public interest. District magistrate Rajeev Sharma said threefour days ago he had received four letters from the state authorities seeking the status reports of 131 cases.

MUZAFFARNAGAR: The state government has sought the status reports of 131 cases related to Muzaffarnagar and Shamli riots from the district administration along with the district magistrate and SSP’s opinion on withdrawal of these cases in public interest.

District magistrate Rajeev Sharma said three-four days ago he had received four letters from the state authorities seeking the status reports of 131 cases. It is learnt that state authorities had in January sought status reports of nine cases. On February 5, prominent khap chaudharies along with BJP MLA Umesh Malik and BJP MP and former union minister of state for water resources Sanjeev Baliyan met chief minister Yogi Adityanath for the withdrawal 131 riot cases

against some villagers of Shahpur and Phugana area.

“We had given a list of 131 cases, which had been registered against village youths who were not present in the villages at the time of communal riots. We requested the CM to withdraw these cases after getting

legal advice in the matter,” said Umesh Malik, BJP MLA from Budhana seat. He said most of the accused in these cases were either working with armed forces or preparing to join armed forces and staying in other districts at the time of communal riots in Muzaffarnagar.