Bengal man hacked in Rajasthan buried in hometown, political parties condemn killing

The body of West Bengal labourer Afrajul, who was brutally hacked and burnt to death in Rajasthan for allegedly committing "love jihad", was buried at his hometown in Malda district's Kaliachak on Friday evening, a senior state government official said.

"His body arrived here in the evening. It has been buried at the presence of his family members and relatives," Malda District Magistrate Kaushik Bhattacharya told IANS over phone.

"I am not aware of any bereavement ceremony here tomorrow. However, the state ministers and other political representatives are scheduled to meet the deceased's family," he added.

Earlier in the day, political parties in Bengal condemned incident of killing and took out rallies to protest against such radicalism.

The youth wing of state's ruling Trinamool Congress took out a candlelight vigil in the city and accused the BJP regime in Rajasthan of total lapse in law and order situation in their state.

Hundreds of party activists, led by Trinamool MP and party's youth wing chief Abhishek Banerjee, senior party leaders Firhad Hakim and Baiswanar Chatterjee among others, walked from Hazra crossing in south Kolkata to the Mahatma Gandhi statue in Esplanade.

Terming the incident of killing as "heartless and unfortunate", Banerjee said such incident proves there is no law and order in Rajasthan.

"The incident that happened yesterday is extremely painful, heartless and unfortunate. I doubt if the people of the country has seen something as horrific and brutal as this ever before.

"This proves that there is no law and order in Rajasthan. The BJP run state government in Rajasthan and the Narendra Modi led central government cannot shy away from taking responsibility of the incident," he added.

Banerjee, also the nephew of state Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, further said "it is surprising that such killings are occurring in specifically in the BJP-ruled states while no such incident has been reported in Bengal during the Trinamool Congress regime in the last six years."

He also demanded the strictest possible punishment of the offenders involved in the incident.

A group of activists of Communist Party of India-Marxist-Leninist held a protest demonstration in front of Rajasthan Bhawan in south Kolkata.

Protesting the incident, a section of students from Kolkata's Jadavpur University planned a march towards the RSS office here. However they were stopped midway by police.

Congress and left parties in Bengal unilaterally condemned the incident of killing in Rajasthan and said such incidents show that under the present regime, the nation is going back to the medieval ages.

"We are not moving towards digital India. In reality we are going backwards to the medieval ages. This is a matter of great concern. I condemn the incident," said state Congress president Adhir Chowdhury, who would go to Malda to meet the deceased's family, said.

Claiming the incident as state sponsored, CPI-M leader Sujan Chakraborty compared the RSS with the jihadist militant group IS.

"The incident in Rajasthan is extremely brutal and barbaric. It is sponsored by the state. Yesterday's incident proves that ISIS and RSS are similar," he said.

However, the state BJP leadership claimed Bengal government is politicising the issue to get hold of the minority vote bank and questioned its role in the incidents of minority killings within the state.

"Bengal government is protesting the incident to get the minority votes. But what has the government done for the families of minority community who were killed here in Bengal," state BJP president Dilip Ghosh questioned.

In a horrifying video gone viral on Thursday, Afrajul from West Bengal's Malda district, was seen being brutally hacked to death and set on fire in Rajasamand district of Rajasthan, for allegedly committing "love jihad". Police arrested the accused, Shambulal Raigar, on Thursday.

--IANS

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