The scion of the erstwhile royal Dogra family on Wednesday joined the campaign launched by former minister and Basholi MLA Choudhary Lal Singh in support of handing over the Kathua rape and murder case to the CBI.
On Wednesday, Lal Singh took out a torchlight procession in posh localities of Gandhi Nagar and Trikuta Nagar in Jammu city to mobilise public support for his campaign. Ranvijay Singh, member of the erstwhile royal family and the son of BJP lawmaker Ajatshatru Singh and grandson of veteran Congress leader Karan Singh, accompanied Lal Singh.
Support to the campaign by Ranvijay is considered as shot in the arm for Lal Singh, who is trying his best to emerge as the leader of the ethnic Dogra minority of J&K.
“I am fighting to restore the dignity and honour of the ethnic Dogra minority, which has been facing worst-ever discrimination by the successive state governments,” Lal Singh said while addressing people at various places during the rally.
Lal Singh, who was forced to resign from the council of the ministers for attending a rally of the Hindu Ekta Manch on March 1 in support of demanding a CBI probe into the Kathua case, tried to rake up Dogra sentiments to garner peoples’ support. “As part of a deep rooted conspiracy to demonise the ethnic Dogra minority of J&K, a vicious campaign was started,” he said, maintaining, “Those who dubbed the whole Dogra community as pro-rapists are part of the game plan. They will be exposed. The perception created by some forces that Dogras are pro-rapists was a conspiracy against Jammu and its Dogras to defame and weaken them,” he said.
Although the BJP has distanced from Lal Singh’s campaign in the sensitive case, the former minister has refused to step back and is spearheading a movement to restore the “lost pride” of the Dogras.
Ever since his forced resignation from the council of ministers on April 14, Lal Singh has been conducting road shows in support of the popular demand for a CBI inquiry into the Kathua incident.
Lal Singh holds torchlight march in support of handing over the Kathua Rape & Murder case to the CBI
