Police on Tuesday said they are probing a complaint that BJP MLA Shalabh Mani Tripathi received death threats after he raised the issue of alleged illegal encroachment at a 'mazar' beneath a railway overbridge on the Deoria-Gorakhpur road.
The threats, sent through email and social media posts, warned that the MLA would be shot multiple times and issued a similar warning to Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, supporters of the MLA claimed.
“The matter has come to our notice. An investigation is underway,” Deoria Sadar, SHO, Durgesh Kumar Singh told PTI.
Tripathi, in a June 25 representation to the chief minister, had alleged that the 'mazar' had expanded illegally over barren land, a drain and part of a national highway.
Acting on his complaint, Principal Secretary (Home) Sanjay Prasad directed the district magistrate and superintendent of police to verify land records, remove encroachment if found illegal and submit a report.
Questioning how construction was permitted next to a railway overbridge without any sanctioned map, Tripathi had recalled that 28 years ago, senior RSS pracharak Ramnagina Yadav was "killed" after he questioned the shrine’s legitimacy.
{{/usCountry}}Questioning how construction was permitted next to a railway overbridge without any sanctioned map, Tripathi had recalled that 28 years ago, senior RSS pracharak Ramnagina Yadav was "killed" after he questioned the shrine’s legitimacy.
{{/usCountry}}“Locals stopped pursuing the matter out of fear. Recently, suspicious gatherings by outsiders have been noticed at the site,” the MLA alleged.
He demanded a special team from Lucknow to probe land ownership and shrine activities in a time-bound manner. Local authorities confirmed that an inquiry into the alleged encroachment has been initiated.