Jammu and Kashmir’s newly appointed deputy chief minister Kavinder Gupta has made a shocking statement on Kathua gang-rape and murder that evoked angry reactions from around the globe.
Gupta, who replaced Nirmal Singh in a fresh cabinet rejig took oath of office on Monday. Immediately after being sworn in as the new deputy CM of the state, the BJP leader told reporters, “Rasana is a chhoti si baat (small incident)… We have to think this should never happen again and the child gets justice. There are many challenges like this facing the government. We should not give Rasana so much significance.”
Later, clarifying his statement, Gupta said, “The Supreme Court is yet to give its verdict on the case. There is no point in discussing the topic over and over again. I said there are a lot of similar cases and this particular one should not be exaggerated.”
His statement drew flak from the former Jammu and Kashmir chief minister, Omar Abdullah, who wrote, “2 BJP ministers removed in J&K for attending a pro-rapist rally & a MLA who is reported to have attended the same rally is promoted as a minister. Why are the BJP/ @MehboobaMufti confused about where they stand on the #Kathua rape?”
2 BJP ministers removed in J&K for attending a pro-rapist rally & a MLA who is reported to have attended the same rally is promoted as a minister. Why are the BJP/ @MehboobaMufti confused about where they stand on the #Kathua rape?
— Omar Abdullah (@OmarAbdullah) April 30, 2018
After a long silence, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi finally broke his silence on the gang-rape and murder of the 8-year-old child in Kathua, he had promised that no one will be spared. This had also coincided with the resignation of two BJP ministers in the Mehbooba Mufti government. These two ministers had attended a pro-rapists rally organised by Hindutva supporters.
