FIR against seer over rape threat in UP speech; NCW sends notice

SITAPUR (UTTAR PRADESH): The Uttar Pradesh Police have filed a First Information Report (FIR) against a priest for allegedly giving “rape threats” to women of a particular community in a speech in UP’s Sitapur district.

The two-minute video is said to have been recorded on April 2 when Bajrang Muni Das, the mahant of Maharshi Shri Lakshman Das Udasin Ashram in Khairabad town, was taking out a procession on the occasion of Navratri and Hindu New Year.

In the viral video, Das can be heard purportedly saying that if any Hindu girl is teased by a man belonging to a particular community, he would himself rape a woman of that community. He also made some more objectionable comments.

“I am telling this to you with all the love that if a single Hindu girl is teased by you in Khairabad, I will openly bring your daughter and daughter-in-law out of your home and rape her,” he is purportedly heard saying in the video.

After the video surfaced on social media, the Sitapur police initiated a probe under AddiWomen tional Superintendent of Police North Rajiv Dikshit.

Prashant Kumar, additional director general (law and order), also said that FIR has been filed and stringent action will be taken against the accused.

Das, however, claimed that the video has been “distorted” to frame him under “false charges”.

“There are 80 per cent Muslims, 20 per cent Hindus in Khairabad. Hindus’ condition in such a situation needn’t be told. During our ‘kalash yatra’,they were prepared with sticks and stones to repeat Karauli-like incident but due to police, it didn’t happen,” he said.

He also talked of retribution. “If they’ll harass our daughters, their daughters won’t be safe too. The video is distorted to fabricate me under false charges.”

Earlier in the day, the National Commission for

on Friday wrote to the Director-General of Police of Uttar Pradesh about the alleged incident in the Sitapur district.

In a letter to the UP director general of police, NCW chairperson Rekha Sharma condemned the remarks made by Das and sought an FIR against him. The Commission alleged that police personnel were reportedly present at the location, however, “none of them stopped him from making such outrageous statements against women.”

“Women are their target, whether it is Hindu threatening Muslims or Muslims threatening Hindus. Though we’re taking such complaints again and again and taking them up with Police, it seems cases aren’t decreasing,” Sharma told news agency ANI.

“People talking like this in public about raping women of a certain community is not acceptable. We have written today itself to UP DGP and I’m going to take up this matter personally with him whether they are religious Godmen or anybody, they should be taken to task,” she said.

A copy of the NCW president’s letter was also sent to the Superintendent of Police, Sitapur.

DAS SAYS THE VIDEO, IN WHICH HE IS HEARD MAKING THE THREAT, WAS ‘DISTORTED’ TO FRAME HIM’