BJP Demands Death Penalty for Shahbad Dairy Murder Accused, Alleges 'Love Jihad'

The BJP on Wednesday demanded death penalty for the Shahbad Dairy murder accused and alleged that the killing of the minor girl in northwest Delhi was a case of “love jihad”.

Sixteen-year-old Sakshi was stabbed over 20 times and then bludgeoned with a cement slab, killing her on the spot. She was found to have 34 injury marks on her body and her skull was smashed in.

“The killer in the Shahbad Dairy murder case should be hanged as soon as possible. A special team should be formed to deal with such cases under the supervision of the Lt Governor so that the Kejriwal government’s appeasement policy does not affect court trials,” BJP MP Manoj Tiwari said.

Virendra Sachdeva, the party’s Delhi unit chief, said fast-track courts should be set up and special prosecutors appointed for cases of rape, murder or “love jihad” as there is already pressure on regular prosecutors.

“Love jihad” is a term often used by BJP leaders and right-wing activists to allege a ploy by Muslim men to lure Hindu women into religious conversion through marriage.

Both Tiwari and Sachdeva demanded capital punishment for the accused, identified as Sahil (20). He was arrested from Bulandshahar in Uttar Pradesh on Monday.

Tiwari said, “The soul of every person in the country has been shaken by the murder of the minor girl by Sahil Sarfaraz. The BJP demands that the murderer be hanged at the earliest.” He also alleged that the murder was an outcome of “love jihad” and added that it is necessary to find out whether any organisation is working to promote such incidents.

The BJP MP also demanded a transparent system for such cases in Delhi so that the city government’s “appeasement policy” does not work in these matters.

“In such serious cases, a special team should be formed to work under the supervision of the Lt Governor so that justice can be done at earliest,” Tiwari said.

Sachdeva also demanded a special prosecutor and claimed there are 108 vacancies for prosecutor roles in Delhi that the city government has not yet been able to fill.

It is the result of providing a special prosecutor that the northeast Delhi riots cases are now showing results and the accused are being punished. That’s why it is necessary to have a special prosecutor in such cases, he added.