Muzaffarnagar:
As chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, who faces intense criticism over crime in Uttar Pradesh, met senior police officers in Lucknow today, came the news that a BJP leader had been shot dead in Muzaffarnagar this morning.
Omvir, 40, was the deputy leader of the BJP in the town of Mirapur in western UP. He was walking towards his farm from his home, when he was shot at by gunmen on a bike. He reportedly returned fire with his revolver, before dying on the spot.
Details are awaited on the daylight murder, which comes days after another BJP leader, Vijay Pandit, was shot dead by four men in Greater Noida. Mr Pandit, a former district BJP vice president, too was accosted by gunmen on motorbikes on Saturday. They, reportedly, put a gun to his temple and shot him.
Several people have been questioned, but there have been no arrests in Mr Pandit's murder so far. The state police said yesterday that four teams are working on the case.
The state BJP's Laxmikant Bajpai said today about chief minister Akhilesh Yadav, "Whether he holds meetings or transfers officials, there will be no result...He should have a political will."
Mr Yadav said he had asked his officials "to focus on law and order and development issues."
The murders come very soon after the gang-rape of two teen girls who were found hanging from a tree in Badaun, an image that provoked outrage globally. Several other cases of brutal assaults on women in UP have followed, prompting Mr Yadav's political rivals to demand his dismissal for being unable to ensure law and order.
Alok Ranjan, UP Chief Secretary, said after Mr Yadav's meeting, "The CM asked officials to reach the site of crime quickly and take strict action...he gave examples how action is not being taken."