J&K: Ganderbal District VP Of BJP Arrested For Land Grab Case, Vandilisation Of Graveyard

BJP vice President Ganderbal Gh Qadir had arrived along with his PSOs and a JCB machine in Kijpora village on Tuesday and tried to forcibly make a path in the middle of a local graveyard.

(Representative Image/ Getty)

Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir police has arrested a BJP leader from Central Kashmir's Ganderbal district on charges of landgrab, harassment, misuse of power and outraging religious sentiments and Trespassing a burial place. According to police, BJP District Vice president of Ganderbal, Ghulam Qadir has been charged under sections 295A and 297 of IPC besides other charges in an FIR under number 70/2020; dated 08/09/2020 in police station Kangan, and was arrested immediately. According to reports, BJP vice President Ganderbal Gh Qadir had arrived along with his PSOs and a JCB machine in Kijpora village on Tuesday and tried to forcibly make a path in the middle of a local graveyard. Locals say that the leader tried to create fear among the poor villagers with the help of his personal security officials and with the nexus of land mafia, made JCB to create a pathway to the inaccessible land lying way behind the graveyard. But as the locals assembled and held a strong protest against BJP and the leader, he escaped from the spot. However, locals informed police and Tehsildar Kangan after which the JCB was seized and an FIR in connection with Trespassing on burial places (Sec 297 IPC) and deliberate and malicious intention of outraging the religious feeling of any class of citizens of India (Sec 295-A) was lodged in police station Kangan. BJP has distanced itself from the actions, saying that the police has taken necessary action. Party Spokesman, Altaf Thakur said that BJP was against any misuse of power and position and if any leader of the party has violated these principles, he will face the wrath of law. However local people are not buying the arguments, and say they are being pressured to withdraw the case and settle the matter "amicably", through land mafia and some people connected with the detained leader. They accuse the BJP's local leaders of being Hand in Glove with land mafia which has created an environment of fear, they said.