Under pressure, minister puts off inauguration

Ravinder Saini

Tribune News Service

Rewari, January 21

The inaugural function of Rao Tula Ram Park in Bawal, earlier scheduled for Wednesday, has been postponed. Union Minister Rao Inderjit Singh is the chief guest and Public Health and Engineering Minister Banwari Lal the organiser of the function.

The development came a day after Bawal 84, a group of various villages under the Bawal subdivision, announced a boycott of the function. It also decided to oppose both leaders by taking out their ‘shavyatra’ (funeral procession) that day.

Bawal Municipal Committee chief Amar Singh Mehlawat cited the engagement of Banwari in the Jind byelection as the main reason for postponing the function.

Sources close to the minister said the function had been put off in the wake of stiff resistance by residents of various villages staging an indefinite dharna outside Banwari’s residence in Bawal for the past over 110 days against inability of the police in locating a minor girl.

Before deferring the function, Banwari held a meeting with Deputy Commissioner Ashok Sharma and Superintendent of Police Rahul Sharma in Rewari on Monday to discuss the missing girl issue. He was updated about the investigation of the crime branch into the case, said the sources.

He was told that narco-analysis and brain-mapping tests of the suspects had been done and the investigating agency was waiting for the report, likely in two weeks. Thirteen-year-old Shivani went missing under mysterious circumstances from Mohanpur village on June 27 last year.

“We will confront both leaders on Wednesday if the programme is not cancelled. Banwari Lal has failed to raise the issue and share the sorrow of the girl’s family despite being a representative of the public,” said Ram Kishan Mahlawat, leading the protesting villagers.