The authorities in Assam’s Dibrugarh district on Tuesday razed the house of Baidullah Khan, one of the four accused in the suicide case of businessman and animal rights activist Vineet Bagaria, on grounds of illegal construction.
The two-storey structure of Baidullah Khan located at Ghoramara was brought down by bulldozers. Khan is among the two accused arrested for allegedly abetting the suicide of Vineet Bagaria, a 32-year-old resident of Dibrugarh who died by suicide at his residence at Shani Mandir road on July 7.
“The house was constructed without having the necessary building permits. The structure was unstable and unfit for people to reside. It was built right on the edge of the road, which is illegal, and electric connections were found to be precarious,” said Biswajit Pegu, deputy commissioner (DC), Dibrugarh district.
The DC added that since the building was unstable and violated several legal parameters, it was razed under provisions of the Disaster Management Act. Pegu said that Khan and his family didn’t reside in the premises and it was given on rent.
Apart from Baidullah Khan, the police have arrested Nishant Sharma in connection with Bagaria’s death. Two other accused, Sanjay Sharma and Izaz Khan are still at large.
Bagaria died by suicide after recording a video in which he named people responsible for his death.
The family had given a shop on rent at their premises to one of the accused, who in turn sub-let it to another accused. But when the family asked the tenants to vacate the property, they stopped paying rent and started threatening the family.
In the video, Bagaria accused the four persons of constant threats that forced him to end his life. The family filed complaints against the accused with the local police, but no action was taken.
The Opposition Congress termed razing of Baidullah Khan’s house as a deliberate act by authorities to target one community. It accused chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma of giving communal tinge to Bagaria’s suicide.
“Our CM tries to communalise everything. In this case there are four accused, two of them are Hindus and two Muslims. But Sarma targets just one accused who happens to be a Muslim,” said Congress MLA and leader of Opposition in state assembly Debabrata Saikia.
“The CM has set a bad precedent. It’s a threat to democratic values and is against Assam’s cultural ethos. Criminals can’t be branded based on their religion. This sends a very wrong message to one community,” he added.
The chief minister visited the Bagaria family’s home in Dibrugarh two days after Vineet’s death and apologised for police inaction on their complaint. He also castigated the deputy commissioner and superintendent of police for failing to put a lid on Baidullah Khan’s activities.
“I can’t even imagine how Baidullah Khan reached this town. I am very ashamed. Has our government become so weak? I have never been so ashamed in my life,” Sarma said.
“Is this Dhubri or Goalpara?” Sarma questioned referring to two districts in lower Assam. “My mind isn’t able to comprehend whether I am hearing of an incident in Assam or in Jammu & Kashmir. This is just one incident. There may be many Baidullahs roaming around here,” he added.