BHUBANESWAR: Holding the BJP government in Haryana fully responsible for the loss of lives and damage to property because of violent activities of Dera followers after chief of Dera Sacha Sauda Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh was found guilty in a rape case by a special CBI court in Panchkula on Friday, the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) today demanded immediate resignation of chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar.
Why did the Haryana government allowed lakhs of Dera followers to converge at Panchkulla and Sirsa even though it was fully aware that Dera followers may resort to violence if their chief will be convincted, BJD Rajya Sabha member and party spokesperson Pratap Deb asked.
Deb said if the government did not have any about the convergence of Dera followers at diffrent places in the state particularly Panchakulla, it was complete failure of the state home department. If the Haryana government was aware and did not act, it was a case complete negligence of the government, Deb said and demanded that Khattar should resign taking moral responsibility for the loss of so many lives in violence.
Alleging that many union ministers and senior BJP leaders were seen in the company of the Dera chief during Swachh Bharat Mission programmes, Deb demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has a lot of explaining to do in this regard.
Senior Congress leader and former president of the Odisha Pradesh Congress (OPCC) Jaydev Jena has also demanded the resignation of Haryana chief minister over the issue. Alleging that influential persons in the BJP and Central government had always encouraged and supported the Dera chief, Jena said so many lives were lost as the Haryana government did not act.