Vadodara: A BJP councillor and a Congress member got into arguments over the move to demolish the houses of the men accused in the Bhayli gang rape case . The councillor had gone to the neighbourhood where the houses are. The Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) had on Tuesday issued notices for the houses in which two of the accused persons — Aftab alias Mumtaz Banjara and Abbas alias Munna Banjara — were staying, at Ektanagar in the Tandalja area of the city.
The civic body had given the property owners 72 hours to reply to the notices. BJP councillor Nitin Donga visited the area on Wednesday afternoon and went to check on the accused person's houses. The houses are locked as their families have moved elsewhere.
A lawyer and Congress member, Ashfaq Malek, also reached the locality. Malek told Donga he should not politicize the matter and residents of the area also want the death penalty for the accused. Malek said razing the houses was like taking the law into one's hands and innocent family members of the accused and others would suffer.
Donga argued back saying that Malek and others should not defend the accused. He pointed out that the houses were also illegal and that was why notices had been issued to them. Malek said razing houses was a violation of a recent Supreme Court judgement on such demolitions.
"It has stayed such actions across the country for now," he said..