BJP guns for Lalu after BIT boy’s death

NEW DELHI: The controversy surrounding the death of Abhishek Mishra, a student of the Birla Institute of Technology, at the Dasham waterfall near Ranchi has become the latest tool in the hands of the BJP rivals of railway minister Lalu Prasad, especially after the deceased’s parents sought a CBI probe into the incident.

Abhishek, reportedly a friend and classmate of Lalu’s daughter, died when the two along with some of their friends had gone for a picnic to the waterfalls.

The boy disappeared at the edge of the fall and his body was retrieved later on Saturday. The initial report said he had accidentally slipped into the waterfall and drowned.

The deceased’s father, Dr SC Mishra, a Delhi-based doctor, on Sunday demanded a CBI inquiry into his son’s death. The BJP leader and former Jharkhand chief minister, Arjun Munda also stepped in with a similar demand, thereby giving a political spin to the issue.

Dr Mishra told reporters: “Strangely, Lalu Prasad’s daughter called me up and told me that my son had drowned. When I asked how, they did not tell me anything more.”

Mr Munda, on his part, said: “We should not merely ignore it by calling it an accident. A high-level enquiry should be ordered into this.” He urged the state government to ask for a CBI probe.