Ayodhya rape case: Bakery of accused bulldozed, admin says it was built on pond land

“The bakery of Moid Khan has been demolished. The bakery had one big room and one small room. It was illegally built over a pond, and has been demolished.”

The Ayodhya district administration on Saturday bulldozed the bakery of a Samajwadi Party leader accused of raping a 12-year-old girl and recording the act on camera.

Materials are being removed from the bakery of the accused (ANI)

“The bakery of Moid Khan has been demolished. The bakery had one big room and one small room. It was illegally built over a pond, and has been demolished,” Ayodhya district magistrate Chandra Vijay Singh said.

Police had on July 30 arrested bakery owner Moid Khan and his employee Raju Khan from the Pura Kalandar area of Ayodhya district in connection with the rape case.

According to police, both had raped the girl two months ago and also recorded the act. The incident came to light when the girl was found to be pregnant in a medical checkup and a report was lodged on July 30.

Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party state general secretary Jai Shankar Pandey defened the accused and said, “Moid Khan is the SP’s city president of Bhadarsa town and he is being conspired against in this case.”

“It is a well-planned conspiracy against Samajwadi Party to defame it. It is very clear that the whole BJP, including the chief minister, is targeting our (Faizabad) MP Awadhesh Prasad,” Pandey said.

“We demand a high-level inquiry and Samajwadi Party leaders must also be included in that probe committee,” Pandey said.

The case triggered a political slugfest on July 31 when chief minister Yogi Adityanath cornered the SP in the state assembly over the matter.

“Moid Khan is from the Samajwadi Party and a member of the Ayodhya (Faizabad) MP’s team. He has been found involved in a case of rape of a 12-year-old. The Samajwadi Party has not taken action against him,” he had said. The CM also met the survivor’s family on Friday and assured them of strict action against the accused, following which two policemen were suspended for delay in carrying out the investigation in the case.

The food adulteration authorities had sealed the bakery on Friday, saying that it was found “illegal”, and the demolition was carried out on Saturday.

Responding to the ruling BJP government’s actions, the SP called for DNA tests on all the accused.

“The BJP government should conduct DNA tests on all those accused of serious crimes to find justice, rather than engaging in politics over the matter. The guilty should receive the full punishment according to the law, but if the DNA tests prove the accusations false, the involved government officials should also not be spared,” the party said in a post on X.

It added: “Instead of helping the victim, the government is involved in a conspiracy to defame the Samajwadi Party. The government should immediately provide the victim with financial assistance of ₹20 lakh.”