SP, MBT to hold Maha Dharna on June 13

he Samajwadi Party, in collaboration with Majlis Bachao Tahreek (MBT) and other prominent organisations of Telangana, will be organising an 'All Party Maha Dharna' at Dharna Chowk, Indira Park, on June 13 from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM in protest against the killing of five under trials by the Telangana State Police in an alleged encounter on April 7.

Samajwadi Party's Maharashtra unit President and MLA Abu Asim Azmi and other eminent personalities will participate in the Maha Dharna.

This was disclosed by Samajwadi Party's National Executive member Jagdish Yadav and MBT leader Amjed Ullah Khan while addressing a press conference here on Sunday. They said that five Muslim under trials - Viquar Ahmed, Syed Amjed, Mohd. Zakir, Mohd. Haneef and Izhar Khan were killed near Alair of Nalgonda district on April 7 in a "fake encounter" by the Telangana Police. "The video footage and pictures taken by the media immediately after the 'fake encounter' clearly shows that all five under trials were hand-cuffed, chained and seated in the police van which was guarded by about 20 trained security personnel. However, the police came up with a theory that one of them tried to escape by snatching the weapon from police personnel. This theory is illogical and ridiculous," said Amjed Ullah Khan.

"Instead of ordering an independent probe, the TRS Government tried to convince people that it was a genuine encounter. Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, who claimed himself to be the most secular leader, remained silent for over a week. Neither Home Minister Nayani Narasimha Reddy nor Deputy Chief Minister Mohammed Mahmood Ali spoke anything about the encounter. They remained elusive to the media and restrained from speaking about this brutal mass murder. Following pressure from the MBT and other organisations, after a week, the Chief Minister constituted a Special Investigation Team comprising of all policemen. This was done only to hush-up the case forever by destroying evidences. The so-called, opportunist, self-proclaimed and shameless Muslim leadership endorsed the decision of Chief Minister and in fact, they invited him to the same streets where the funeral procession of victims Viqar and Haneef was taken about a month ago" Amjed Ullah Khan alleged.

Jagdish Yadav said that the Samajwadi Party had earlier given a deadline of 10 days for the State Government to order a CBI probe. It had also threatened to conduct this Maha Dharna if government fails to order the probe. Since, the State Government and the Chief Minister remained adamant on the issue, this All Party Maha Dharna is being organised on June 13.