The Chhattisgarh government has ordered a probe by National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the Sadhram Yadav murder incident of Kawardha of Kabirdham district, the announcement was made by the Chhattisgarh’s Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Wednesday, February 28.
Speaking to the media, CM Sai said “that Sadhram Yadav was brutally killed by the accused, who mercilessly slit his throat without possessing any prior enmity with the victim, the incident is condemnable beyond words. The wife and brothers of the Yadav have come here seeking justice, though all the accused in the case have been nabbed, the brutal way in which Yadav was killed, the family members are demanding a high level enquiry into the matter.
As a CM of the State, I along with my colleagues have decided that we would recommend a NIA investigation into the case as it is not only that a person has been killed but an idea, added the CM, who was accompanied by senior Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, Dharmlal Kaushik, and Deputy CM, Vijay Sharma, who comes from the same constituency where Yadav was murdered.
कवर्धा में साधराम यादव हत्याकांड की जांच NIA को सौंपी जाती है।
इस जघन्य प्रकरण में शामिल सभी किरदारों को उनके अंजाम तक पहुंचाये बिना हमारी सरकार चैन से नहीं बैठेगी। pic.twitter.com/qFCT8j3GGl
— Vishnu Deo Sai (@vishnudsai) February 28, 2024
Sadhram Yadav, a 50-year-old employee at a cowshed located at outskirt of Kawardha town was brutally killed by as many as six accused who slit his throat over an alleged verbal spat on January 20 in Lalpur Kala village. The incident sent shockwaves through the community, prompting huge outrage among the locals and Hindu outfits, which demanded immediate arrest of the accused. Later on, the Kawardha police, while swinging into action, nabbed as many as six accused, including Ayaz, Idrish, Mehtab, Sheikh Rafiq, and others, from the case.
Earlier, the Organiser reported, that the police, during the course of the investigation, also slapped the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) against the accused, which marked the first such instance when UAPA was imposed in a case other than cases pertaining to left wing extremism in the State.
According to Kawardha Superintendent of Police Abhishek Pallav, investigations have revealed disturbing details about the accused, including Ayaz’s frequent trips to Kashmir and Idris’s associations with suspicious individuals. Evidence gathered from Ayaz Khan’s phone indicated multiple visits to Jammu & Kashmir, with subsequent probes uncovering potential links to terrorist elements in the region.
Additionally, communications intercepted between Idris Khan and suspected individuals have raised further concerns about their involvement in extremist activities. The investigation further revealed that the heinous act was purportedly aimed at instilling fear ahead of the consecration of the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya.
In the aftermath of the tragic incident, State Deputy CM Vijay Sharma, a native of the same town, visited the village of Sadhram and extended financial assistance of Rs 5 lakh to the deceased’s family. Expressing his dismay, Sharma had also mentioned that when villagers visited the accused in jail, they found them laughing, highlighting the incomprehensible mindset behind the heinous act.
Though, weeks after the incident, a number of Hindu organisations, including the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) called for a shutdown on February 14 and demanded capital punishment for the perpetrators. Further, Yadav’s wife, also returned a cheque for Rs 5 lakh, emphasising the need for justice to be served for her husband’s brutal murder.
It is noteworthy that earlier, in another significant move, the Vishnu Deo Sai led Chhattisgarh Government on February 22 had also announced a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) enquiry into the communal scuffle incident of Bemetra in which a Hindu Bhuvneshwar Sahu was killed by a frenzied mob over an alleged minor scuffle that had taken place between the children of Hindu and Muslim community.
