MP twins' kidnap-murder: Shivraj Singh Chouhan demands CBI probe
What's the story
A day after two six-year-old twins were found dead in Madhya Pradesh, former Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, after meeting the victims' family, has urged Chief Minister Kamal Nath to hand the case over to the CBI. The twins, belonging to a business family, were kidnapped from a school bus in Madhya Pradesh's Chitrakoot on February 12. Here are the details.
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Culprits must be hanged: Chouhan
"I would like to tell the Chief Minister [Kamal Nath] to give this case to CBI. Attempts are being made to twist the incident. Why didn't the investigating team find success in the case? Culprits must be hanged," said Chouhan.
Kidnap-murder
The twins were killed despite some ransom being paid
While the children were travelling on a school bus on February 12, two masked men with guns barged in, and kidnapped the twin boys, who were in kindergarten. Two days after the audacious kidnapping, the kidnappers called up the twins' father, oil trader Brijesh Rawat, and demanded Rs. 2cr in ransom. Despite Rawat paying Rs. 20 lakh, the twins were later murdered.
Arrests
Six people have been arrested so far
Meanwhile, following the kidnapping, the Madhya Pradesh police had announced a reward of Rs. 50,000 for any leads. Later, the Uttar Pradesh police also joined in on the investigation. As many as six accused were arrested this Saturday, and based on inputs from them, police searched for the twins throughout the night, and on Sunday morning found their bodies.
Discovery
Police discovered the twins' bodies on Sunday; protests erupted
The two children were found dead in a river in the Banda district of Uttar Pradesh, their hands tied to a stone. The discovery of the twins' murder, on Sunday, triggered protests in Chitrakoot, and locals forced shop and other businesses to close down. In a bid to stop protests from escalating, 1,500 police personnel were deployed and Section 144 imposed.
Politicization
The kidnap-murder has sparked a political blame game
Meanwhile, police have said that one among the six accused has ties to the Bajrang Dal, and given this fact, the case has also taken a political turn. Madhya Pradesh ministers have accused the UP government, and Minister of Public Relations and Law and Legal Affairs PC Sharma even demanded CM Yogi Adityanath's resignation. Chouhan, meanwhile, blamed the Congress government in Madhya Pradesh.
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MP Police are trying to hide their own failure: Chouhan
"To say that they [the accused] were with a particular organisation proves that they [police] want to twist the incident to a new direction, so that confusion remains and they can hide their own failure," said Chouhan.