Gehlot demands fair probe into Alwar lynching

Jaipur, Nov 13 (IANS) Former Rajasthan Chief Minister and senior Congress leader Ashok Gehlot on Monday condemned the lynching of Umar Khan in the state by cow vigilantes and demanded a fair probe into the killing.

In a series of tweets, he said: "I strongly condemn the lynching of Umar Khan in Govindgarh in Alwar district.

Umar Khan's dismembered body was found on the railway tracks near Govindgarh on Friday.

He said that as per reports, Khan was thrashed and later shot dead by a mob of cow vigilantes when he was transporting cows to his native village in Bharatpur. "Who are the forces behind such brazenness audacity?"

The Congress leader demanded a fair investigation and said the case should not meet the same fate as the Pehlu Khan lynching.

Castigating the Bharatiya Janata Party government in the state, he said it had totally failed in curbing such incidents.

Various civil society bodies held a protest here at Gandhi Circle in which relatives of Umar also participated and demanded the arrest of the culprits and monetary compensation and government jobs for his kin.

Around 15 such organisations also faxed a memorandum to Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje to demand the arrest of erring policemen and 'gau rakshaks' in the case.

They also demanded withdrawal of cow smuggling case against Umar and his fellow travellers Tahir Khan and others and ensure an end to attack on Muslims in Rajasthan by self-proclaimed cow protectors and others, particular on the Meos in Alwar and Bharatpur district since they are dairy farmers.