Haryana Minister Captain Abhimanyu's home in Rohtak was burnt down during Jat protests.
Highlights
- Feb 19: Mob protesting for Jat quota set Capt Abhimanyu's house on fire
- CCTV clip shows his wife, son being chased by an angry mob
- Capt Abhimanyu alleges mostly Congress workers were in the mob
On February 19, a large mob broke into the home of Haryana minister Captain Abhimanyu in Rohtak, 80 km from Delhi, and set it on fire. The crowd kept coming back to make sure everything was reduced to ashes.
Four hours of terror for the minister's family have been caught in CCTV footage and mobile phone videos taken by the men later arrested for the violence that marked the start of violent protests in Haryana for Jat quota in jobs and education.
Not chronicled on camera is the shock that has driven the entire family to counselling; three young children hid to stay alive and watched their home burn.
A car explosion saved the family members who had been trapped in the two-storey bungalow by a crazed mob of 1,000.
A CCTV clip shows the minister's wife and his son running from an angry mob.
The blast, set off by a gas cylinder placed inside a car, distracted the mob and Captain Abhimanyu's family, including his wife and nine-year-old son, ran out. They were sheltered by neighbours until a chopper was sent to rescue them.
A CCTV clip shows the minister's wife and his son being chased by protesters. The minister was in Chandigarh at the time.
Another clip shows Captain Abhimanyu's home in flames, thick smoke rising up. The attackers are seen sharing sweets with cries of "
Khushi manao (let's celebrate)!"
The mob came for two more days until the bungalow - located in one of Rohtak's most upscale areas - was burnt to the ground.
"The house burnt for nine days. Every single object, memory, record was wiped out. Even the ceiling fans melted," Captain Abhimanyu told NDTV.
The mob was distracted by the explosion.
More than 20,000 books in the politician's ancestral library were destroyed.
"It was a political conspiracy to wipe out my entire family," said the finance minister, alleging that mostly Congress workers were in the mob.
Haryana's BJP government has charged former Chief Minister Bhupinder Hooda's one-time political secretary Prof Virender with conspiracy to provoke the violence.
On the day of the attack, three people died in police firing on protesters out in the streets and the army was called in to Rohtak and other affected areas.