Uttarakhand CM pays tributes to statehood activists killed in 1994 police firing

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat on Friday paid tributes to the six activists from the hill state who died in the Rampur Tiraha firing episode in 1994, when the statehood movement was at its peak.

Speaking at a programme held at Rampur Tiraha in Muzaffarnagar district of Uttar Pradesh where the incident took place on October 2, 1994, Rawat termed it as a "blot" on the history of undivided Uttar Pradesh and said that his government was working to turn Uttarakhand of the agitationists' dreams into a reality.

Part of an agitation demanding a separate state of Uttarakhand, the activists were going to Delhi to stage a dharna, when police opened fire at them. Some protestors alleged that women activists were also molested by the police.

"October 2 is a date we remember for different reasons. Besides celebrating it as the birth anniversary of two great leaders like Mahatma Gandhi and Lal Bahadur Shastri we also remember it for Rampur Tiraha firing incident which is a blot on the history of both undivided UP and Uttarakhand," Rawat said.

Calling October 2 as a “black day” for every individual hailing from Uttarakhand, Rawat said the state government is doing all it can to turn the vision of a prosperous Uttarakhand into a reality.

Several political leaders from Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh were present at the Shaheed Sthal at Rampur Tiraha along with Rawat.

Uttarakhand, which used to be a part of Uttar Pradesh, came into being on November 9, 2000 through the Uttar Pradesh Reorganisation Act, 2000.

Crediting the then BJP governments at the Centre and in Uttar Pradesh for the creation of Uttarakhand, Rawat said the state has progressed by leaps and bounds in terms of per capita income, educational facilities and infrastructure.

“Uttarakhand is a state which has 575 kilometres of international borders. We have built roads upto the China border today," Rawat said.