Pics by Spoorthi Ullal
Daijiworld Media Network-Mangalore ( SHS)
Mangalore, Apr 21: Though prima-facie the ANF shoot-out at Thanikodu check post leads people with some common sense to conclude it as cold-blooded murder, Congress government in the state is playing a defensive card along with the Karnataka police, showing reluctance and resistance towards entrusting the case to Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Former union minister and veteran Congress leader, Janardhana Poojary on Monday April 21, urged the state government to hand over the case relating to the death of Kabeer in the hands of Anti Naxal Force personnel, for an independent and impartial inquiry into the incident that has been acquiring communal hue in the district.
Addressing reporters here at DCCO (District Congress Committee Office), Poojary, who recently fought Lok Sabha election from Dakshina Kannada constituency on Congress ticket, strongly criticized the apathy of the state government for dilly-dallying on the issue of handing over the case to CBI. “The government should take steps to reinforce a sense of trust among the people, to enable them to have faith in the administration”, he said. He hit out at state home minister, K J George, saying that the latter had, through his actions, made people to consider him as one of the weakest ministers in the cabinet. ‘He should entrust the case to the CBI, as people have no faith in the CID investigation,” he felt.
‘On the face of it, the circumstances leading to the killing prove that it was not an encounter but a clear case of murder. Despite the fact that a number of evidences point out towards murder, the home department has remained mum over the killing of Kabeer. Besides, it has failed to take any stringent action against the ANF personnel involved in the shootout. “Why is the police department is hesitating to take any action? Answers to all these questions have to be revealed through an independent investigation”, he stressed.
Any link of Rashriya Swayamsevak Sangh in the functioning of the department needs to thoroughly probed, to expose the true color of Sanga Parivar, which has been creating panic among the minds of the people, he insisted. He also questioned the attack on the family of the victim by the RSS members, even as the body was placed in government hospital of Srigeri.
He also went on to the extent questioning as to whether the department and the home minister are intentionally trying to malign the reputation of chief minister, Siddaramaiah, who excelled in providing an able administration in the state. He demanded CBI probe into the issue to strengthen the trust among people in the government. Meanwhile he was unhappy about the compensation sum of five lac rupees that was announced by the state government for the family of the victim. He requested the state to ensure a job to the kin of the victim and to enhance the compensation to a least Rs 20 lac to the suffering family.