Rahul Gandhi meets family of Dalit man killed in Raebareli, says will ensure justice

Raebareli (UP): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday met the family of a 22-year-old Dalit man who was shot dead in Salon area here recently, and said he would ensure the family gets justice.

Gandhi claimed that people in the area were angry because no action was being taken against the "mastermind" behind the killing.

"All people here are demanding justice because a Dalit man has been killed. His entire family has been threatened, one person has been killed but no action is being taken here...," Gandhi told reporters at Bhuvalpur Sisni village.

Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, is the member of parliament from Raebareli constituency.

"The SP (superintendent of police) here is not taking action against the mastermind, he is arresting small people. I want that every section of the society should be respected in Uttar Pradesh and everyone should get justice... We are not going to step back until this family gets justice," he said.

The victim, Arjun Pasi, was shot dead on August 11 allegedly after an altercation with some locals. Six people have been arrested in the case so far, according to police.

After his brief interaction with the victim's family, Gandhi said the killing of the Dalit man is a "clear cut" case of injustice and he will "put pressure" to ensure that justice is delivered to them.

Gandhi arrived at the Fursatganj airport in adjoining Amethi district around 1 pm and straightway headed for the Bhuvalpur Sisni village in Raebareli, some 30 km from the airport.

He was accompanied by Congress' Uttar Pradesh unit president Ajay Rai, AICC general secretary in-charge of the state Avinash Pande and senior party leader Pramod Tiwari, among others.

"Clearly injustice has been done against the family, against the community. This will have to be rectified. There is no choice, they will have to rectify it and the family will get justice," the Congress MP said.

Pasi was allegedly killed after quarrel over the money owed by the accused to his brother, who is a barber.

"I spoke to the family, talked to his mother. She said her younger son cuts hair. The youth came to him six or seven times and got his hair cut but did not pay," Gandhi told reporters. When he insisted on payment, his brother was murdered, he added.

When asked what punishment the accused should get, Gandhi said, "This is court's job, not mine. But my job is to make sure the law is enforced, to put pressure for it. I am not going to back out. It is a Dalit family, that is why it is happening."

When asked for comments on the Kolkata rape and murder case of a doctor, Gandhi said he has come to Raebareli for this incident and has spoken about the Kolkata case earlier.

"I do not want to talk about that case here. I don't want to describe that case here," he said.

Alleging that the press doesn't want to highlight the Dalit's issue, Gandhi said that he won't allow any distraction. "I will speak about the Kolkata issue later," he added.

After his visit, Gandhi returned to Fursatganj airport to fly back to Delhi. However, due to a technical issue with the chartered aircraft, the Leader of the Opposition had to travel to Lucknow by road and then fly to Delhi, a local police official told PTI.