A delegation of Congress leaders on Tuesday visited the Fatehpur house of a Dalit man who was allegedly lynched in Rae Bareli on October 3.
The team that met the family members of Hariom Valmiki included the chairman of the scheduled castes department of the All India Congress Committee Rajendra Pal Gautam, the chairman of the SC department of the Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee and Barabanki MP Tanuj Punia and a cabinet minister in the Telangana government Vivek Venkat Swami.
Meanwhile, National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) held a demonstration to protest against the incident, at Hazratganj here. A candlelight march was also carried out from the UPCC office in Mall Avenue to Mahatma Gandhi statue in Hazratganj on Tuesday evening by UPCC president Ajay Rai, along with AICC general secretary and Congress UP In-charge Avinash Pandey.
Meanwhile, in a joint statement issued on Tuesday morning, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Rae Bareli MP Rahul Gandhi said that the brutal murder of Valmiki was a stain on this country and society.
On Monday night, Gandhi had spoken to the family of Valmiki. who was lynched in Rae Bareli on October 3 after being mistaken for a drone thief. Speaking to Hariom’s father Gangadeen Valmiki and younger brother Shivam, Gandhi expressed solidarity and assured the family of full support.
Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee president Ajay Rai met the victim’s family on Monday.
{{/usCountry}}Uttar Pradesh Congress Committee president Ajay Rai met the victim’s family on Monday.
{{/usCountry}}According to police, Hariom was walking to his in-laws’ home in Dandepur Jamunapur when a mob surrounded him and accused him of being a member of a gang marking houses with drones for theft. Five villagers were arrested last Saturday in connection with the incident. Also, five police personnel, including two sub-inspectors, were suspended on Monday in connection with the incident.