Varanasi violence: Cong demands judicial inquiry

Congress today demanded a judicial probe into the Varanasi arson and slammed the arrest of its MLA Ajay Rai, who the party claimed was trying to maintain "peace and order" as the violence erupted.
"To conceal its failure police lodged an FIR against 105 people, including MLA Ajay Rai and Swami Avmukteshwaranand, who were maintaining peace and order, while no report was lodged against BJP MLAs and leaders," Chairman of UPPCC communication department Satyadev Tripathi told reporters here.
He also alleged that Samajwadi Party and the BJP were doing "shadow boxing" in UP for their own benefit.
"There is a shadow boxing between SP and BJP due to which communal tension is increasing and both the parties are promoting it in their own way," Tripathi said.

He alleged that BJP and SP were fanning communal tension in entire west UP.
Tripathi claimed that saints were cane-charged over immersion of idols in which Congress did not participate.

Police personnel and Hindu Yuva Vahini indulged into arson and violence and it exposed the failure of local administration and intelligence, he claimed.
He demanded an inquiry by a sitting High Court judge should be conducted into the incident and action should be taken against guilty persons.
The Congress leader also sought security for Congress MLA Rai, saying that he was the lone surviving witness against mafia Mukhtar Ansari.
Rai was yesterday arrested along with 50 others in connection with violence and arson in Varanasi.

Violence had erupted on Monday as thousands of people, including seers, Rai along with some other Congress leaders and those from BJP took out the march from Townhall to Dashashwamedh Ghat to protest against police lathicharge.