Yogi may withdraw cases against riot accused lawmaker

Uttar Pradesh government was contemplating withdrawal of cases against controversial Muzaffarnagar riot accused BJP lawmaker Sangeet Som.

According to the sources, as many as seven cases had been registered against Som between 2003 and 2017 at Muzaffarnagar, Saharanpur, Meerut and some other places.

The lawmaker had been booked for rioting, violation of section 144, inciting communal passion and IT Act, sources said.

''Reports have been sought from the police stations, where these cases are registered,'' said an official here on Tuesday.

While the Opposition parties slammed the state government for the decision, the lawmaker said that the cases were ''politically motivated'' and were false.

''The government is trying to shield those, who were involved in riots and inciting violence in Muzaffarnagar... it shows the real character of the saffron party,'' said a senior Samajwadi Party (SP) leader.

Earlier also the state government had recommended withdrawal of around 131 ''politically motivated'' cases pertaining to the 2013 Muzaffarnagar riots, that claimed 62 lives and left thousands displaced.

Almost all these cases were lodged against BJP leaders, including senior saffron party leader and former union minister Sanjiv Baliyan and UP minister Suresh Rana.

The leaders of powerful 'khaps' (community panchayats) had demanded the withdrawal of what they termed ''fake'' cases against youths of the community.

At least 62 people had been killed and thousands of others displaced in communal clashes between Jats and Muslims in Muzaffarnagar in 2013. Many of the affected families had refused to return to their native villages fearing for their lives.