Protesting women block Mayawati's convoy in Aligarh

Aligarh, Feb 6 (ANI): Scores of grieving women blocked a convoy of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati on Saturday accusing a state minister of alleged murder and harassment.

The agitated women said they were protesting the kidnapping and harassment of their husbands by Uttar Pradesh Rural Engineering Services Minister Jaiveer Singh over the payment of money.

According to certain media reports, the women also blamed Jaiveer Singh for the deaths of two persons.

In a bid to convey their grievances to Mayawati, the enraged woman halted the heavily secured convoy by banging their hands against her official car, requesting an audience with her.

Security officials, however, managed to quickly overpower the women and ended the agitation.

Accusing Singh of threatening their families with 'dire consequences', the protesting women demanded justice from Mayawati.

"They (Jaiveer Singh and his associates) asked our husbands to pay Rs. 30 lakh, in return for which they assured him support in the upcoming elections. Our husbands sold off our property in New Delhi to raise the money. But after receiving the money, Jaiveer Singh and his aides threatened them with dire consequences, saying they would kill them, rape their wives and kidnap us," said Chandravati Devi, one of the protesting women.

"We are poor, what should we do now? We have come on the roads since our property is gone. Where should we go now? Is there justice in Mayawati's regime? She does not know our plight since she stays elsewhere. Nobody listens to us," she added.

Visibly disturbed with the chain of events, Mayawati later interacted with the women and assured them she would take immediate action to resolve their grievances.

She also ordered officials in Aligarh to take note of the issue and address the women's grievances.

Mayawati was in Aligarh to oversee the status of various development projects and schemes initiated by her government across the state. (ANI)