Opposition parties yesterday slammed federal minister Jayant Sinha for allegedly honouring eight men sentenced to life in jail in a lynching case after they were released on bail in Jharkhand.
The minister of state for Civil Aviation, however, defended his action, saying he had full faith in the judicial system.
Sinha welcomed the eight men by hugging and garlanding them after they were released on bail on Thursday.
A total of 11 men, including a local BJP leader, were sentenced to a life term for beating a meat trader to death on June 30 last year in Ramgarh, Jharkhand.
According to reports, the life sentences of the convicts were suspended by the Ranchi High Court and after getting bail they headed to Sinha’s residence, led by a local Bharatiya Janata Party leader.
Condemning Sinha’s action, the Congress slammed the ruling BJP and accused it of fanning communal tension.
“It is only in ‘New India’, where those who are supposed to get the noose are instead being garlanded,” the Congress said in a tweet.
“The minister of the BJP-led central government, which honours those accused of riots, is now garlanding convicts of lynching. Is the Modi government encouraging social instability,” the Congress asked.
Communist Party of India (Marxist) general secretary Sitaram Yechury also attacked the BJP for “tearing India’s social fabric” and promoting politics of hate.
“We don’t need to look far to see who or which ideology is tearing our social fabric apart when union ministers patronise those convicted of lynching,” he said in a tweet.
Swaraj India founder and lawyer Prashant Bhushan also slammed the minister and accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP president Amit Shah of patronising “lumpen thugs”.
“Jayant Sinha hugs and garlands Ramgarh lynching convicts as they come out on bail. Obviously the junior minister is keen to remain in the good books of his bosses, Modi and Shah, who patronise these lumpen thugs,” Bhushan said.
However, Sinha defended his actions and said he had full faith in India’s judicial system and the rule of law. He said while he unequivocally condemned all acts of violence and rejected any type of vigilantism, he had misgivings about the fast-tack court judgment sentencing the eight men to life imprisonment.
“The rule of law is supreme in India’s constitutional democracy and any unlawful act, particularly those that violate the rights of any citizen, should be punished with the full force of the law,” Sinha said.
“Unfortunately, irresponsible statements are being made about my actions when all that I am doing is honouring the due process of law. Those who are innocent will be spared and the guilty will be appropriately punished,” he said in a series of tweets.
“I have repeatedly expressed my misgivings about the fast-track court judgment sentencing each accused to life imprisonment. I am pleased that the high court will hear the matter as a statutory court of appeal to test the correctness of the fast-track court order,” the minister said.
“In the Ramgarh case, the Ranchi High Court, which is the first court of appeal, has suspended the sentence of the accused and released them on bail while admitting their case. The case will once again be re-heard.”