'Have killed 5 people so far; workers have been given free hand': BJP leader caught on tape admitting lynching

The BJP leader is seen making the comment while interrupting a speaker, who was urging a group of people to launch an agitation against the lynching of 45-year-old Chiranjilal Saini.

Jaipur: A BJP leader's video in which he admits to lynching people has gone viral on social media after it was shared by Rajasthan Congress chief Govind Singh Dotasra on Saturday. The purported video clip is of BJP's former Ramgarh MLA Gyan Dev Ahuja, who is allegedly seen admitting his supporters have so far "lynched five people".

The BJP leader is seen making the comment while interrupting a speaker, who was urging a group of people to launch an agitation against the lynching of 45-year-old Chiranjilal Saini. Saini was allegedly lynched by members of the Mev Muslim community on Sunday morning in Govindgarh town on suspicion of tractor theft.

Ahuja met Chiranjilal's family members on Friday. During this, while talking to the people at the house of the relatives of the deceased, the BJP leader said that "we killed 5 people". "We have so far lynched five people, be it in Lawandi or Behror. This has happened for the first time in this area that they have lynched someone. I have given free hand to workers to kill. We will get them acquitted and secure bail," he said.

The video which was shot by somebody at the location has gone viral on social media. Saini died during treatment at Jaipur's state-run SMS Hospital on Monday. BJP's Alwar (South) chief Sanjay Singh Naruka said that the party "does not have this thinking". "These are his own views," he added.

The former Ramgarh MLA, according to news agency PTI, maintained his remarks, saying anyone involved in cow smuggling and slaughter won't be spared. Sharing the video, Dotasra said it has exposed the BJP's true face. "What more proof is needed of the BJP's religious terror and bigotry? The real face of the BJP has been exposed," he said.

To mention, in recent years, at least two incidents have taken place in Alwar where cow vigilantes attacked Mev community people on allegations of cow smuggling. In one such incident, 55-year-old Pehlu Khan was lynched in Behror on April 1, 2017. Similarly, Rakbar Khan died after being beaten up in Lawandi village in Alwar's Ramgarh on July 20, 2018 on suspicion of cow smuggling.

When contacted, Ahuja said he was sitting with a local RSS leader who suggested for launching an agitation to protest against the lynching of Chirajilal Saini. Ahuja said that he told the speaker that five Mev Muslims who were smuggling cows were "beaten up by our workers".

"It is the Mev people who smuggle and slaughter cow and Hindus have sentiments for cows, therefore, they target such smugglers," he said. Ahuja said it was his duty to protect his workers.