Akhilesh's Rs 30-lakh aid ends protest of slain journo's family

In a desperate damage-control exercise amid charges of shielding one of his ministers, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav took the “compensation route” to stop the protest by the family of the slain scribe Jagendra Singh.

UP Minister of State for Backward Welfare Rammurti Singh Verma was an accused in the matter.

Though the slain scribe’s family had declared that they would not call off their dharna until Verma was arrested and a CBI probe was ordered, they reversed their decision after meeting Akhilesh here on Monday.

According to sources, the chief minister has assured the family  financial help worth Rs 30 lakh, jobs for Jagendra’s two sons and inclusion of the name of the scribe’s father in the Samajwadi Pension Scheme.

“The chief minister has also assured that our land, which had been grabbed by others, would be given back to us...he has also promised an impartial probe,” Jagendra’s father Sumer Singh said after meeting Akhilesh here.

Pointed out that the minister was neither sacked nor arrested, Sumer Singh said that Akhilesh had assured that he (Verma) would “go to jail if found guilty” after the probe.

The family members, who had been holding their indefinite dharna over the past week, had earlier alleged that pressure was being exerted upon them to withdraw their complaint against the minister. “We were promised Rs 20 lakh for doing that,” alleged Jagendra’s son Rahul. The UP government had made it clear that it would not sack Verma pending an inquiry.

The forensic report, which was likely to be submitted to the police in a day or two, reportedly contended that Jagendra had set himself ablaze though the scribe in his dying statement had alleged that he was set ablaze by a cop on the instruction of Verma, who was sore with him for writing posts against him on Facebook.