Unnao case | Congress demands shifting of survivor to Delhi

Party calls U.P. as the epicentre of crimes against women

Locals stage a protest after bodies of two minor Dalit girls were found in a field and another in critical condition on Wednesday evening, near Baburaha village in Unnao district, on Thursday, February 18, 2021.

The Congress on Thursday launched a scathing attack on the Yogi Adityanath government after two Dalit girls died under “suspicious circumstances” in a village in Unnao district of Uttar Pradesh, and demanded that the third survivor be immediately airlifted to find out the truth about the incident.

U.P. had become the “epicentre of violence against women” and the BJP’s slogan of “Beti Bachao” was a warning to save the girl child from such crimes, the Congress said.

In a Facebook post, Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who is in charge of U.P., alleged that the family of the victim had been put under house arrest that obstructed justice.

“We request the UP government to listen to the family and take immediate steps to shift the third child to Delhi for treatment,” she said.

Former Congress chief Rahul Gandhi tweeted, “The UP government is not crushing a Dalit family but also the dignity of women and human rights”.

“The entire Congress and I are standing as the victims’ voice and will ensure that justice is delivered,” he added.

2017 video of Modi

At a press conference at the Congress headquarters, Alka Lamba played out a 2017 video of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in which he questions the Samajwadi Party-led government’s record with regard to crimes against women.

“After the Hathras incident, now Unnao. The Yogi government has miserably failed. It seems like “Beti Bachao” slogan was a warning. The government has become a curse for women and girls,” she stated.

“Criminals are roaming free while family members of the victims were kept in a police station. U.P. has become the epicenter of rape and crime against women and girls,” she said.

Ms. Lamba questioned the “silence” of Women and Child Development Minister, Smriti Irani, who is a Lok Sabha member from U.P.

“Why is Smriti Irani silent? She is an MP from U.P. and is the Women and Child Development Minister. This is a double-engine government, then why is there no security and justice to girls” she asked.

Published - February 18, 2021 07:38 pm IST