In a first, a Union Minister on Friday attended the funeral of a murder accused in India.
Met the family of deceased Ravi in Bisara village, Greater Noida. Bisara get settled now pic.twitter.com/RfDzga3ddC
— Dr. Mahesh Sharma (@dr_maheshsharma) October 7, 2016
On Friday, Union Minister for Tourism and Culture Mahesh Sharma tweeted that he attended the funeral of 21-year-old Ravin Sisodia, an accused in the Dadri lynching case.
Sisodia, who died at a Delhi hospital on Tuesday due to “multi-organ failure of kidneys and lungs”, had been arrested in October last year for lynching Mohammed Akhlaq, who allegedly consumed beef at his residence in September 2015. The accused’s family however alleged that he died due to a physical assault carried out by prison officials
According to media reports, Sisodia’s family had refused to cremate the body for three days demanding a CBI probe, compensation of Rs 1 crore and action against jail officials and victim Mohammed Akhlaq’s brother, who has been accused of cow slaughter.
The Indian Express reported that the family agreed to go ahead with the cremation only after they were assured of compensation of Rs 25 lakh and following assurances that a 11-member committee of residents led by the local MLA would be constituted to monitor the police investigations against Akhlaq’s brother, Jan Mohammed.
After holding talks for three hours, Union Minister Mahesh Sharma, BJP MLAs Sangeet Som and Bhagwan Sharma brokered the deal between Sisodia’s family and the district administration.
“The state government will give Rs 10 lakh. Another Rs 10 lakh will be given by social institutions while the area’s MP Mahesh Sharma and MLA Sangeet Som will give Rs 5 lakh. The state government has agreed to recommend a CBI inquiry in the case once a written request from the family is received. I have promised to look after the entire education of his one-year-old daughter. We will ensure that his wife receives education and employment, we can also provide her computer training,” Singh said.