Bajrang Dal worker Monu Manesar denies link to Bhiwani charred bodies incident

Following a case being registered into the deaths of two men whose bodies were recovered from an SUV in Haryana's Bhiwani district, Bajrang Dal leader Monu Manesar on Friday claimed in a video message that neither he nor any member of his group had any role to play in the incident.

Bhiwani/Bharatpur:A day after the charred bodies of two men were recovered from an SUV in Loharu, situated in Haryana's Bhiwani district on Thursday, Monu Manesar - one among the accused mentioned in the FIR - put out a video message on social media on Friday, denying any link to the incident. Monu, the coordinator of Bajrang Dal's Manesar mandal who has been, as per reports, active in the area as a 'Gau Rakshak', claimed that allegations against him as well as other members of his team were baseless.

The message comes after the family of the deceased, in the police complaint, alleged that those who abducted the duo from Rajasthan's Bharatpur, near the Haryana border, were from the Bajrang Dal. No confirmation has been received from the police in this regard, who said investigation was ongoing to ascertain whether the incident was one of cow vigilantism.

"Allegations levelled against us at the Gopalgarh Police Station are completely baseless. The situation at hand is extremely unfortunate, but no Bajrang Dal team was present at the spot. We got to know about it from social media, and demand harshest punishment to be dealt to the accused. I request everyone to assist the police in their investigation, which I, too, will follow" Manesar said in the clip.

The victims, Nasir and Junaid alias Juna, were both residents of Ghatmeeka village in Pahari tehsil of Bharatpur district. The FIR has been registered in Gopalgarh PS against Lokesh, Rinku Saini, Srikant and Monu Manesar under sections 143, 365, 367 and 368 of the Indian Penal Code. Meanwhile, officials at the Bharatpur Police Station on Friday said half a dozen people had been detained and were being interrogated in connection with the crime. "Those named in the FIR are associated with the Bajrang Dal but whether they were involved in the crime or not is yet to be ascertained," Inspector General of Police, Bharatpur range, Gaurav Srivastava was quoted as saying.

A significant detail into the case emerged on Friday, as officials noted that among the victims, Junaid had cases previously registered against him. "While Nasir has no criminal records, Junaid has had five cases registered against him in the past for cattle smuggling," Srivastav said, while speaking to ETV Bharat.