Kasganj: Chandan Gupta’s family want him declared martyr; arrests follow inflammatory WhatsApp texts

Family members of Chandan Gupta, the youth killed in the Kasganj violence on Republic Day, met Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Tuesday and demanded that he be given martyr status. Gupta’s sister told media that the Chief Minister patiently heard them out but did not respond to their demand for declaring Gupta a martyr.

"We have given our demand in writing but there was no assurance from the Chief Minister. We are hopeful that the state government will take a sympathetic view on the matter," a family member said.

The family also asked Adityanath to direct police to ensure that all those guilty in the killing of Gupta are brought to justice. An official said that the Chief Minister assured that those responsible for Gupta's killing will not be spared. Gupta was killed in the violence that spilled after clashes erupted during the 'Tiranga Yatra' taken out by the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad—the student body affiliated to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh—and Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Republic Day. Kasganj was singed with communal clashes and violence in the aftermath of a 'Tiranga Yatra' brought out by the on Republic Day, leaving one youth dead and many injured.

Meanwhile, UP police has arrested two people for circulating inflammatory videos and communal messages on social media in Kasganj district, police said. Identified as Ram Singh and Ajay Gupta, one of them is the admin of a WhatsApp group on which inflammatory posts were being circulated, in an apparent bid to whip up communal passions, a police official said. The WhatsApp group named 'Nakshatra Computers' has been deleted and a case lodged against the two.

Police officials said the duo was using the social media and this WhatsApp group, created after the initial violence, to spew vitriol against a community and was spreading rumours.