LUCKNOW: BSP president Mayawati on Wednesday termed the horrific incident of burning alive a 20-year-old Dalit man over his relationship with a woman from another caste in Hardoi as "cruel and condemnable" and demanded immediate action against the culprits.
Abhishek alias Monu was allegedly beaten up, kept hostage in a house and set ablaze by some people in Hardoi on Saturday.
He was being taken to a Lucknow hospital in a serious condition when he succumbed to his burns on Sunday.
In a tweet in Hindi, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief said, "To burn alive a Dalit youth over a love affair in the name of caste in Hardoi district of Uttar Pradesh is extremely cruel and highly condemnable. The government should immediately punish the culprits so that such incidents do not recur in the state, this is the demand of the BSP".
According to Superintendent of Police (SP) Alok Priyadarshi, locals said Monu was in a relationship with a girl and had gone to meet her when the incident took place. Monu's mother died of shock after hearing the news.