BURNING ALIVE DALIT MAN OVER LOVE AFFAIR CONDEMNABLE: MAYAWATI

LUCKNOW: BSP president Mayawati on Wednesday termed the horrific incident of burning alive a 20-year-old Dalit man over his relationship with a woman from another caste in Hardoi as "cruel and condemnable" and demanded immediate action against the culprits.

Abhishek alias Monu was allegedly beaten up, kept hostage in a house and set ablaze by some people in Hardoi on Saturday. He was being taken to a Lucknow hospital in a serious condition when he succumbed to his burns on Sunday.

In a tweet in Hindi, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief said, "To burn alive a Dalit youth over a love affair in the name of caste in Hardoi district of Uttar Pradesh is extremely cruel and highly condemnable. The government should immediately punish the culprits so that such incidents do not recur in the state, this is the demand of the BSP." According to Superintendent of Police (SP) Alok Priyadarshi, locals said Monu was in a relationship with a girl and had gone to meet her when the incident took place.

Monu's mother died of shock after hearing the news.

In another tweet, BSP President Mayawati also launched a fresh attack on the Congress, holding it responsible for communal forces gaining strength in the country.

The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister also accused the Congress of adopting double standards. “Communal forces in the country are becoming stronger because of the Congress party's policy of double standards. Instead of weakening communal forces, the Congress party is engaged in weakening the forces raising their voice against it. People should remain careful,” she said in a tweet. On Tuesday, she had slammed the Congress after six BSP MLAS in Rajasthan joined the Congress.

“The Congress government in Rajasthan has once again broken BSP MLAS and proved that is an unreliable and untrustworthy party,” she had said.