Rajasthan priest burnt alive cremated after govt assures to fulfill demands

Jaipur: The family of a temple priest, who was burnt alive allegedly by land grabbers in Rajasthan’s Karauli district, cremated the body following state government’s assurance to fulfill all the demands made by the family.

The government said it would give a compensation of Rs 10 lakh, a house under the Indira Awas scheme, a job on contract to one of the family members and an assurance that all the absconding accused will be arrested at the earliest.

Earlier, the victim’s family refused to cremate his body till their demands are fulfilled by the state government. Several people, including BJP MP Kirodi Lal Meena sat on a ”dharna” demanding justice for the priest’s family

A three-member committee constituted by the BJP also reached the village to prepare a factual report on the incident.

With the village remaining tense, a large posse of policemen and senior officials were on vigil in the area.

Meanwhile, Governor Kalraj Mishra spoke to Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. During the telephonic discussion, Mishra expressed his worry over the law and order situation in the state in the context of several incidents, including the Karauli incident and the alleged gangrape of two minor sisters in Barmer.

The temple priest had died due to burn injuries after he was attacked by a group of people over a land dispute. The priest, whose statement before the police has been recorded, said six people poured petrol on his bales of bajra lying at the disputed site and set it on fire. The priest had further said that the culprits even poured petrol on him on Wednesday and tried to set him on fire.

The priest was rushed to Jaipur’s SMS hospital where he died on Thursday night. While the main accused, identified as Kailash Meena, has been arrested by the police, the other five attackers are absconding.