Source: TW
Murder of Ajmer daily editor exposes sordid sex scandal involving criminals, politicians
The murder of an editor exposes a sordid sex scandal involving criminals and politicians.
Supporters mob police jeep carrying Jaipal: delayed arrest
It would beat a third-rate Hindi potboiler hands down: the obligatory doses of sex, scandal, nude photographs, blackmail and even a murder thrown in for good measure.
But there was no 70mm screen to blank out at the end. This is all for real in sleepy Ajmer, the small Rajasthan town that is a holy place for both Muslims and Hindus because it houses the sacred dargah of Khwaja Moinuddin Chisti.
But it was an unholy row that rocked Ajmer last fortnight. Madan Singh, 32, chief editor of a curiously titled local daily, Lehron ki Barkha (The Rain of Waves), was attacked in a local government hospital and murdered. Attempts on his life had begun on the night of September 4. Two persons in a Maruti van stopped his car and fired at him. One bullet got lodged in his right hip. Madan jumped into a nearby drain and the attackers sped away.
Madan Singh and brothers (top three from left)
Later in hospital, Madan Singh named Dr Rajkumar Jaipal, a former Congress(I) MLA, and his friend Sawai Singh, a local mafia kingpin, as being responsible for the attack. But the police ignored his statement.
On September 12, five persons armed with a shotgun and two pistols entered his hospital room and shot at him. Before succumbing to his injuries two days later, Madan named Jaipal, Sawai Singh and Narendra Singh as his assailants. Even at this stage the police did not arrest Jaipal, assuming Madan, also a history-sheeter, was deliberately trying to implicate Jaipal who belongs to a rival group.
It was only after Narendra Singh was arrested and confirmed Jaipal’s involvement that he was arrested along with Sawai Singh and Jitendra Chaudhary, another accomplice. All four are now in custody. The fifth accused, Sudhir Shivhare, is still at large.
Investigations have revealed a sordid criminal-politician nexus behind a complex blackmail racket. Enquiries suggest a link between the murder of Madan Singh and the sensational sex scandal which first came to light in May this year when Navjyoti, a local Hindi daily, published nude photographs of some schools students along with details of the blackmail operation.
The chain of events which culminated in Madan’s murder began three years ago with a love affair between a class nine student and a boy from a local affluent family.
The boy’s friends managed to take obscene photographs of the two and used them to blackmail the girl into introducing them to her classmates. Since then, the gang is believed to have successfully expanded its operations to involve nearly 200 school and college girls.
Officials privately admit that the scandal had come to their notice over a year ago, but local politicians managed to stall legal action saying it would lead to communal tension as many of the accused belonged to the influential “khadim” (caretaker) families of the dargah. “It was difficult to decide whether to publish the photographs or not,” defends Navjyoti editor Deenbandhu Chaudhary.
“Finally, we decided to go ahead because it was the only way to shake the administration and police out of their slumber.” The news sent shock waves throughout the town. A three-day bandh was observed and angry citizens organised public demonstrations.
Forced out of its torpor, the BJP Government was compelled to order an inquiry but state BJP Secretary Onkar Singh Lakhotia admitted: “The action has come too late.”
Eight persons have been arrested and charged for abduction and gang rape under the Indian Penal Code and Indecent Representation of Women (Prohibition) Act. Six others are still at large. So far, 29 victims have come forward to record their statements.
Madan Singh’s body: violent end
One of the most disturbing aspects of the scandal is the involvement of state Congress(I) leaders. Among those who face trial are Farooq Chishtee, president of the Ajmer Youth Congress, Nafis Chishtee and Anwar Chishtee, vice-president and joint secretary respectively of the city unit.
The Congress(I)’s image has been further tarnished with the indictment of Jaipal in the Madan Singh murder case. One journalist lobby is trying to project Madan as a “martyr”. They suggest he was probably killed because he tried to expose Jaipal in the sex scandal through his newspaper column. This lobby has even persuaded the chief minister to announce a Rs 50,000-compensation for Madan’s family.
Navjyoti editor Chaudhary
The police, however, discount this theory. According to their version, the murder was the result of professional rivalry between Madan and the Jaipal-Sawai Singh group. Omendra Bharadwaj, dig, says: “It is clearly a gang war between the Sawai Singh and Madan Singh gangs.”
Madan, in fact, had a criminal record and his photograph adorns the history-sheeters’ display board in the local police station. According to police records, he faced over two dozen criminal cases, of which at least four had ended in conviction. A few others were pending at the time of his murder.
Madan’s brothers, Sham BHU and Ranvir, who took over as co-editors of Lehron ki Barkha after Madan’s death, are also known criminals. Says M.N. Dhawan, SP: “They are a criminal family. For them, journalism was only a cover.”
Madan Singh started publishing Lehron ki Barkha as a weekly in 1983. He allegedly used it as an instrument to blackmail and collect advertising revenue. Early this year when he found the sex scandal catching currency, he converted the weekly into a daily.
Photograph published in the daily
Yellow journalism is a flourishing business in Ajmer. A town with a population of just five lakh, Ajmer brings out over 150 publications and has more than 350 journalists. However, only about 40 work with established publications; most of the others are small-time operators who specialise in advertisement revenue collection, blackmailing, extortion, mud-slinging and touting favours.
All it takes is a registered newspaper title and official approval for getting DAVP advertisements. And it is possible to get a four-page tabloid printed for a mere Rs 300. No wonder petty shopkeepers, kabadis, and housewives dominate the list of accredited journalists at the local public relations office. Madan was obviously enterprising in this field.
The police say he used his long-running serialised column on the scandal to extort money from the parents of girls who had been victims. Most succumbed. A few, like Pushpa Dhanwani, chose to speak out. In August, she filed an FIR alleging Madan had blackmailed her, demanding Rs 20,000 for not publishing her pictures. Madan was awaiting the court’s decision on his anticipatory bail plea when he was gunned down.
There are signs that Ajmer is going the Bihar way. Journalists covering the story were badly roughed up by Jaipal’s supporters. Mafia muscle seems to be a potent force in the town.
As a result, justice for the victims of this murky drama may still be several scenes away. In the meantime, no one involved in the scandal, whether businessmen, journalists or politicians, has come out with even a shred of decency or honour.