Half-a-dozen Hindu outfits, including Bajrang Dal, Hindu Jagaran Vedike, Vishwa Hindu Parishat and Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishat (ABVP) staged a protest in Beltangady on Monday, urging the police to withdraw ‘false’ cases foisted on people for staging a dharna and urging the police to nab miscreants involved in the rape and murder of a PU student near Dharmastala on October 9.
Bantwal-based advocate Prasad Kumar said it was the residents of Beltangady who had handed over the murder accused to police. Yet, they filed false cases on the activists. This proves that police enjoy humiliating people, he said and urged the government to hand over the case to the CoD. Former MLA Shakuntala Shetty said if the police repeat such practices, she would be forced to stage a dharna in front of the ASP’s office.
No Withdrawal of Cases: SP
Later, a memorandum was handed over to Beltangady tahsildar Kusuma Kumari alleging that the Police Department had filed cases against people without collecting proper information. Santhosh of Karkala had allegedly raped and murdered 17-year-old Soujanya near Dharmastala on October 9. Enraged over this crime, organisations staged a protest before the police station on subsequent days.
Later, it was the public who traced the accused and handed him over to Beltangady police. On the same night, a huge crowd had gathered before the police department urging them to hand over the accused. The police filed cases under charges of preventing government officials from discharging their duties and other sections.
When contacted, Superintendent of Police Abhishek Goyal said there was no question of withdrawing the cases. “We were forced to file cases as miscreants damaged a police jeep and roughed up policemen on duty. But we will not punish the innocent,” he added.