Farrukhabad (UP): The BJP has slammed the Congress over the Malegaon case, with both Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra accusing the Congress of harbouring anti-Hindu agenda. Adityanath accused Congress of "nurturing" terrorists and foisting false cases against Hindu organisations when in power, while Patra said the century-old party has a hatred for Hindus and is trying to bring separatism in the country.
The witness, who turned hostile, on Tuesday (December 28) at old Mumbai's special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court that ATS officers had forced him to take the names of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and five RSS members in the terror case.
"This mischief of the Congress is a crime against the country and its leaders should apologise to the people," Adityanath said while addressing a public meeting during the BJP's Jan Vishwas Yatra in Farrukhabad, UP. "How the Congress played with the country is not hidden. When in government, they encouraged and nurtured terrorists and fake cases were foisted against Hindu organisations. And now when it is out of government, it opposes all works which are in people's interest," the CM alleged.
Addressing mediapersons on Wednesday (December 29), Patra added, "Congress can go to any extent to defame Hindus, saints and even the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh. Rahul Gandhi had said that 'bhagwa atankwad' (saffron terrorism) is more dangerous. Rahul Gandhi speaks on Hinduism and Hindutva every day. They are trying to bring this separatism."
On Tuesday, one more witness turned hostile in the 2008 Malegaon bomb blast case. This is the 15th witness to turn hostile in the case. The witness told Mumbai's special National Investigation Agency (NIA) court that he was tortured by ATS, the then investigating agency of the case. The witness told the court that he was kept in Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) office for seven days after the blast and after that, ATS threatened to torture and frame his family members. The witness told the court today that ATS forced him to falsely take Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and five RSS members' names. The case is currently being investigated by NIA. Six people were killed and over 100 injured when an explosive device strapped to a motorcycle went off near a mosque in Malegaon, a town in north Maharashtra, on September 29, 2008.
(With Agency inputs)
