BJP to wait for police probe in stalking case before deciding Barala's fate

The BJP leadership would like to wait for the outcome of the investigation against Vikas Barala, accused of stalking a woman in Chandigarh, before taking a call on the fate of his father Subhash Barala who is the party's Haryana chief.

As of now, the central leadership has decided to weather out political pressure from opposition parties seeking action against Subhash after allegations surfaced that police did not invoke serious charges of kidnapping against his son Vikas and that a CCTV footage that reportedly captured the stalking incident had gone missing.

The Congress led opposition twisted save girl child slogan "Beti Padhao Beti Bachao" to attack the BJP and the Modi government.

BJP sources said after the party central leaders sought information about the episode from the Khattar government, it was felt that the matter should be left to the police to probe allegations against Vikas levelled by victim Varnika Kundu, daughter of a bureaucrat.

She wrote on her Facebook page that Vikas and his associate chased and accosted her in a white SUV late on Friday night and tried to even bang on her car.

Contrary to rumours that went wild during the day, BJP sources said that Subhash has not been asked to put in his papers.

The top brass has told the central leaders not to react and leave it to state leaders to do the talking on the embarrassing episode.

BJP MP Subramanian Swamy slammed the Chandigarh police for not conducting a free and fair probe in the case. "With my associate lawyer AP Jagga on attempted abduction of an IAS officer's daughter by two drunk goons, I will file a PIL in Chandigarh," Swamy tweeted.

The incident, however, has exposed fault lines within the party's Haryana unit. "Incident with the young girl from Chandigarh is unfortunate & shouldn't happen to anyone. We must also NOT play politics with a woman's dignity," BJP MP from Chandigarh Kirron Kher had tweeted.

BJP MP from Kurukshetra Rajkumar Saini was more critical as he sought the resignation of Subhash Barala. "If (someone in) our family has done a mistake, resignation should be submitted on moral grounds," demanded Saini as reported by local newspapers.

Barala's close associate Ramveer Bhatti defended him but his statement invited strong criticism. Bhatti questioned why the victim was roaming so late in the night and pontificated that parents should ensure that their children are home on time.

National Commission for Women, meanwhile, wrote a letter to the police asking them to conduct a "free and fair investigation" into the stalking case.