Rajnath assures 'strict action' in lynching case

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday said "strict action" will be taken in the case of lynching of a Muslim man in a Uttar Pradesh village over rumours that he ate beef.

At the inauguration of a two-day national conference on human trafficking here, he said: "Be it the central or state governments, whoever tries to spread communal tension or create any such problem or involve in crime, strict action will be taken. This is nothing new."

He was replying to a query on the September 28 night lynching of Mohammed Akhlaq, a resident of Bisara village of Dadri in Greater Noida near Delhi.

The victim was dragged out of his home and lynched following rumours that he ate beef. His family denied the allegations.

On the rise of human trafficking in the South Asian countries, the minister said human trafficking is a "border-less organised crime".

He said it affects not just India but many other nations as well.

Trafficking is growing fast in all the countries of South Asia and around 1.5 lakh people are victims, he said.

Rajnath Singh said a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Bangladesh has been signed to check human trafficking.

"We also need to sign an MoU with Nepal too," he added.