Justice Remains Elusive in Kanhaiya Lal Murder Case, Gehlot Claims
On Saturday, Congress leader and former Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot criticized the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), alleging that true justice has yet to be achieved in the Kanhaiya Lal murder case even four years after the tragic incident. He accused the party of leveraging the case for electoral benefits while failing to expedite the trial process.
Gehlot pointed out that despite an investigation by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) and hearings in a specialized NIA court, the progress has been minimal under the BJP administrations at both the Central and state levels. He remarked in a post on X, “The hope for justice remains unfulfilled even today under the BJP’s ‘double engine’ government.”
Slow Pace of the Trial
Highlighting the sluggishness of the proceedings, Gehlot indicated that only 21 out of nearly 180 witnesses have been examined to date. He expressed concerns that this delay seems to be more than just neglect, suggesting that there might be an intentional strategy to prolong the legal process.
The BJP, which spread the lie of ‘5 lakh versus 50 lakh’ to win elections, never intended to deliver justice in the first place.
Political Manipulation
Gehlot further noted that both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah have ceased mentioning the Kanhaiya Lal murder during their visits to Rajasthan. He encouraged the state’s populace to “see through the BJP’s politics” on the matter, alleging that their actions have toyed with public sentiment rather than provide justice to the victim’s family.
Kanhaiya Lal, a tailor based in Udaipur, was violently murdered on June 28, 2022, after he openly supported a controversial remark made by suspended BJP spokesperson Nupur Sharma. The horrific incident incited substantial communal unrest in Rajasthan, leading to the swift arrest of two individuals from a minority community. The accused even recorded the murder and disseminated the video online, igniting widespread outrage across the nation. Subsequently, the case was transferred to the NIA for further investigation, occurring at a time when Gehlot’s Congress government was in power in Rajasthan.
