Congress demands Manohar Khattar govt's dismissal after rape incidents

The opposition Congress on Wednesday demanded the dismissal of the M L Khattar government in Haryana, alleging a complete breakdown of law and order in the state after two minor Dalit girls were allegedly raped and murdered in separate incidents.

A Congress delegation, led by former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, submitted a memorandum to the Governor on Wednesday and sought the imposition of President's Rule in the state.

Alleging that lawlessness prevails in the state and there was a complete breakdown of the law and order machinery, the Congress urged the Governor to recommend to the Centre to dismiss the Khattar government.

Besides Hooda and most of the party legislators from the state, the delegation comprised senior leaders Selja, state CLP leader Kiran Choudhary and Mahila Congress's national president Sushmita Dev.

The Congress leaders expressed deep concern over the recent incidents of rape-and-murder and "rising crime graph" in the state.

A 15-year-old girl's half-naked body was found on Saturday from near the bank of a canal in a village in Jind district after she had gone missing last Tuesday from her village in Kurukshetra district.

The girl was brutally assaulted, her private parts mutilated and some of the vital organs ruptured, police had said earlier.

In a separate incident, an 11-year-old girl was raped and killed in Panipat last week.

After meeting the Governor, Dev said they also demanded job for the next of kin of the victims.

She said the 15-year-old girl's family has demanded a CBI probe into the case.
On the allegations of the 15-year-old girl's family that local police in Kurukshetra delayed action on their complaint, Dev said, "The Governor assured us that he will definitely take it up with the chief minister. He also assured us that he will seek a report from the chief minister on why such incidents were taking place."

In the memorandum, the Congress alleged that the citizens are feeling insecure.

"Law and order has collapsed in the state and criminals have neither fear of government nor law. This government is directionless and has failed to ensure safety and security of its citizens. A progressive state is fast turning into crime hub," according to the memorandum.

It further said, "Many gangsters from UP are now turning to Haryana considering it as safe zone."

The Congress delegation also cited figures to back their claim that crime graph has gone up in Haryana during the past three years.

Senior Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala said that on an average, a rape and a murder happen in Haryana every eight hours.

"I think it is time that crime prevention and crime control is taken seriously by the chief minister, who is also the Home Minister of the state," he said.

"It is an issue about the safety of the girl child and women. People in Delhi are as much affected by the growing crime incidents in Haryana as anywhere else, so I think Government of India should also take stock of this deteriorating situation and call the chief minister and reprimand him, if necessary," Surjewala said.

The shocking incident of the alleged rape of the Dalit girls came close on the heels of another incident last month, in which a six-year-old girl was allegedly raped and killed in Haryana's Uklana area in Hisar district.