The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court on Tuesday issued notice to six persons, including Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati, on a writ petition for transfer the case of arson at the residence here of State Congress chief Rita Bahuguna Joshi from the Crime Branch of the Criminal Investigation Department to the Central Bureau of Investigation.
Apart from Ms. Mayawati, the station house officer of Hussainganj police station, the Principal Secretary (Home), the Secretary in the Ministry of Home, government of India, the CBI Director and the Principal Secretary to the Governor were named respondents by the PCC president.
Ms. Joshi’s residence was torched on the night of July 15, allegedly by ruling Bahujan Samaj Party supporters in a reaction to derogatory remarks she made against Ms. Mayawati at a Mahila Congress meeting in Moradabad district. Ms. Joshi was arrested, and released on bail after a few days.
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As for the arson, the Congress filed a first information report at the Hussainganj station, naming some BSP workers includingJitendra Singh ‘Babloo’, MLA, and Lucknow unit BSP president Intezar Abidi ‘Bobby’. The case was handed over to the CB-CID by the Mayawati government after it rejected the Congress demand for a CBI inquiry.
A Bench comprising Justices Abdul Mateen and Ashwani Kumar Singh fixed October 13 for the next hearing.