Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Shekhawat has demanded an inquiry by an independent Central agency into the self-immolation and subsequent death of monk Baba Vijay Das, who was among a group of seers that had been agitating for long to shut down illegal mining near Deeg in Bharatpur district of Rajasthan.
The hills of Kankachal and Adi Badri near Deeg form part of the famous Braj Chaurasi pilgrimage circuit. Seers looking after the pilgrimage had been demanding the removal of stone quarries. They wanted the entire region declared as a forest area through a notification to stop any kind of mining activities.
Mr. Shekhawat said that the State government was speaking disingenuously, with Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot issuing a statement that he wanted an inquiry over the circumstances surrounding Baba Vijay Das's self-immolation and subsequent death.
