BJP govt standing with people who commit atrocities against girls: Rahul Gandhi

Hitting out at the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday said that the ruling party is standing with those committing atrocities against girls and arresting his party members who are protesting against it.

"BJP government in Uttar Pradesh is standing with those committing atrocities against girls and arresting Congress people who are protesting. But in this path of struggle, our people will stand on the streets and will face oppression. #BJPBhagaoBetiBachao" he tweeted.

Gandhi's tweet came after the Shahjahanpur district administration denied permission to hold a 'Padyatra' in support of the girl student who has levelled rape allegations against BJP leader and former Union Minister Swami Chinmayanand.

According to the letter, the public meeting was to be held on Monday at 10 am followed by a 'padayatra' from Congress office in the town and was to go through several places like Sadar Bazaar, Bahadurganj and Ghantaghar on the way to Lucknow.

"This is to inform you that currently festival season is going on and Navratri, Durga Puja and Dusshera functions are being held. The proposed route of the 'padayatra' passes through busy markets due to which it is not possible to give police protection. Also, the place cannot accommodate nearly 2,000 people during the public meeting," the letter said.

"As Section 144 (which prohibits the gathering of more than four people) is imposed in Shahjahanpur district, it is not possible to orgse a programme of such a large scale. Hence, the administration has denied permission to hold the 'padayatra'," it said.

A local court in Shahjahanpur had on September 20 sent Chinmayanand to 14 days of judicial custody for allegedly sexually assaulting the law student. He was charged with an offence not amounting to rape, stalking and criminal intimidation.

Earlier, during the SIT interrogation, the student had accepted that she instigated one of her friends to send messages to Chinmayanand demanding extortion money. After her confession, she was arrested and produced before the court, which sent her to judicial custody for 14 days.

The law student went missing on August 24 after a video of her alleging that a person from 'Sant Samaj' had threatened to kill her and her parents went viral on the social media.

The girl, who studied in a college run by Chinmayanand, had later testified before a local court that she was repeatedly raped by the BJP leader for over a year. She said that the accused recorded the incidents on camera and used them to blackmail her.

Chinmayanand, who was the Minister of State for Home in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, was admitted to Lucknow's Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences on September 23 after he complained of chest pain.

( With inputs from ANI )