The violence erupted in Bulandshahr on December 3 after recovery of cow carcasses (File)
Days after two people including a senior police officer were killed in clashes that erupted after 25 cow carcasses were found, BJP lawmaker Bhola Singh has pinned the blame on the police for the violence in Uttar Pradesh's Bulandshahr. He said today that the police resorted to lathi charge on protesters that incited the violence.
"I have come across a video where a policeman is saying that protesters became violent only after police resorted to lathi charge. Why such a situation arose that general public was lathi-charged instead of pacifying him?" Mr Singh said.
The violence erupted on December 3 after recovery of the carcasses in the forest close to a police post. Inspector Subodh Kumar was found shot dead in his official vehicle. Four people have been arrested in connection with his death, but the main accused, Yogesh Raj, a Bajrang Dal functionary, is still missing. Yogesh Raj has sent out a WhatsApp video proclaiming his innocence.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath had announced a compensation of Rs 40 lakh for Mr Singh's wife, Rs 10 lakh for his parents and a government job for a member of his family.
The government today announced that Jaithari-Kuraoli road leading to the village of police officer Subodh Kumar Singh in Etah has been renamed to Shri Subodh Kumar Singh Shahid Marg.
Meanwhile, Inspector General Ram Singh today said the bigger question the police face is that who was behind cow slaughter. "But who was behind cow slaughter...who was behind the cow conspiracy. This is a bigger question than catching a person who's on video, against whom there is no forensic proof," he said today.
"We can only act on evidence. We need to do forensic tests. It is not clear who shot the police officer, who shot Sumit (the second man killed in mob violence)," the police officer told NDTV.