Sofa, AC installed for Yogi's visit to martyr’s family, removed after he left

Lucknow, May 15: For half-an-hour on Friday, the family of slain BSF head constable, Prem Sagar, had an air conditioner, a sofa, a carpet and saffron towels to cover the table – all in honour of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath who visited them at their home in Tikampar village of UP’s Deoria district. But in less than an hour of Adityanath’s departure, the district administration removed all the items they had placed, alleged Sagar’s family members.

“Around 1 pm on Friday, officials came and installed an AC in our drawing room, placed a sofa and spread out a carpet on the floor. The CM was in our house for about half-an-hour and soon after he left, they began dismantling the AC and took away everything else,” said Sagar’s son Ishwar Chandra.

Sagar, 45, was one of the two soldiers killed, and their bodies mutilated, in an attack by Pakistan’s Border Action Team on May 1. On Friday, Adityanath had visited Sagar’s family and handed over a cheque of Rs 4 lakh and a certificate of a fixed deposit of Rs 2 lakh.

While Deoria District Magistrate Sujeet Kumar did not answer to repeated calls from The Sunday Express, Ramkesh Yadav, Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) of Bhatpar Rani tehsil in Deoria, said officials of the Public Works Department had brought the AC and other items. He said arrangements for the CM’s visit had been done by ADM (Administration) Virendra Kumar Dohrey and Chief Development Officer Rajesh Kumar Tyagi.

While Tyagi did not answer calls on his official number, Dohrey said the arrangements were made as per the practice adopted for “the arrival of any VIP”. “If a guest comes for a visit, we have to make arrangements. We have to take care of the facilities that he is accustomed to. However, I also had another duty that day and so, I was not present all the time during the CM’s visit. I do not have information about when the AC and other stuff was removed from the house,” he said over phone.

According to a government statement released after Adityanath’s visit, the CM promised to build a a memorial for the martyr in the village. He also promised to build a school for girls on a 1.5-acre land, develop a park and build a concrete road leading to the village. The CM also promised to send a recommendation to the Centre on the family’s demand for allotment of a cooking gas agency.