Pal lauded the Chief Minister for delivering justice to many other women like her. Photo: Screengrab/ANI
SP MLA praises Yogi for 'justice' for slain husband
Pooja Pal lauded Adityanath for implementing zero-tolerance policies, leading to the neutralisation of criminals like Atiq Ahmed
Samajwadi Party MLA Pooja Pal on Thursday (August 14) put her party in a spot as she praised Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath for ensuring justice to for her slain husband Raju Pal, who was shot dead by gangster Atiq Ahmed in 2005.
Pal, addressing the Uttar Pradesh Assembly, a 24-hour marathon discussion on 'Vision Document 2047', also thanked the Chief Minister for “listening to her” when everyone else ignored her plea for justice.
‘Yogi Adityanath delivered justice’
"Everyone knows who murdered my husband (Raju Pal). I want to thank the Chief Minister for bringing me justice and hearing me when nobody else did,” said Pal as quoted by NDTV.
She also lauded the Chief Minister for delivering justice to many other women like her by introducing and implementing policies like zero tolerance for crime that led to criminals like Atiq Ahmed being neutralised, adding that now the entire state looks up to him with trust.
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‘No one wanted to fight criminals’
Pal said that when she raised her voice, she found that no one wanted to stand up against criminals like Atiq Ahmed. She also said that when she felt like her efforts had hit a dead end, the Chief Minister delivered justice for her.
"I raised my voice when I saw that no one wanted to fight against criminals like Atiq Ahmed. When I started feeling exhausted with this fight, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath gave me justice," she added as quoted in an NDTV report.
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The backdrop
Her husband, former Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) MLA Raju Pal, was shot dead on January 25, 200,5, days after their marriage. According to the police, the murder was the outcome of a political rivalry with Atiq Ahmed's brother Ashraf, who lost to Raju in the 2004 bypoll to the Prayagraj West seat. Then, in February 2023, a key witness in the case, Umesh Pal, was murdered in the Sulem Saray area of Prayagraj.
Days after Pal’s murder, Atiq and Ashraf-both arrested-were shot dead while being taken by police for a medical check-up in Prayagraj. The murders came close on the heels of the death of Atiq's son Asad, who was killed in an alleged encounter in Jhansi.