BJP upset with the official who spoke on Kasganj violence

He received much bashing for his post and deleted the post after it drew attention from media and political corners of the state alike. BJP MP Vinay Katiyar reacted strongly to his comments and reportedly said the DM has lost his mind and should go for medical treatment.

Raghavendra Vikram Singh's now deleted Facebook comment slamming "forces running into minority dominated localities and raising anti-Pakistan slogans", like in Kasganj on Republic Day, is under fire from leaders in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).Several BJP leaders not only denounced the bureaucrat for his remarks but also demanded action against him.

One MLA, Rajesh Mishra, told the media that such an official had no business remaining in the chair for even a minute and that he will raise the issue with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, BJP President Amit Shah and Adityanath. "His mentality as reflected in the Facebook post clearly shows he is working against our values and hence should be acted against," Mishra said.

Official sources said that Adityanath had reportedly ticked off the District Magistrate over telephone on Tuesday. He has also been reportedly summoned to Lucknow.

The controversial post has since been deleted, apparently under pressure from the government.

In his post, IAS officer and district magistrate of Bareilly, Raghavendra Vikram Singh wrote how it has become a tradition in our society to create an unnecessary ruckus over trivial issues. He wrote, “It has become a strange tradition, take the procession deliberately to Muslim neighbourhoods and shout slogans against Pakistan. Why? Are these Muslims Pakistanis? The same thing happened in Khellam, Bareilly. Then stone pelting occurred, and cases were filed…”

His post mentions clearly that he has worked in the army and has served in Jammu Kashmir, Ranchi and Hyderabad during his Short Service Commission tenure. Later, he went on to join the Uttar Pradesh civil services. R Vikram Singh belongs to Bahraich and has a master’s degree in Economics from Gorakhpur University.

With inputs from IANS