Bowing to mounting pressure from the Opposition, UP chief minister Mayawati on Sunday suspended the BSP MLA from Banda, Purshottam Naresh Dwiwedi, who is an accused in the rape of a minor dalit girl.
The MLA has been suspended till the completion of inquiry. The chief minister said that if found guilty, he would be expelled from the party and sent to jail.
Earlier on Saturday night, the chief minister had ordered a CB-CID probe in incident.
The victim’s medical examination was also conducted on Saturday, almost nine days after the incident allegedly took place. She was examined by a team of three doctors and although reports said the girl had been bleeding, the doctors refused to say anything further on her condition.
The girl, belonging to the dalit community, had accused the BSP MLA and his henchmen of not only subjecting her to gangrape but also using his influence to implicate her in a theft case. The girl was accused of stealing the legislator’s licensed firearm and Rs 2 lakhs for which she is presently lodged in Banda jail. The issue turned into a major political controversy with the Congress, Samajwadi party and the BJP accusing Ms Mayawati of shielding criminals in her party. While the Congress demanded a probe into the incident by a sitting high court judge, the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) has sought a report from the state government on the incident.
Meanwhile, the accused legislator, Purshottam Naresh Dwiwedi, told reporters in Banda that his political rivals were conspiring to defame him through this incident.