KOCHI: THE decision to conduct CBI inquiry into the second Marad massacre brings a ray of hope for those who still have the bleeding memories of the tragedy, though 13 years have passed.
It is believed that the nature of the investigation by the central agency might be more serious than the one carried out by the police, as the root of the conspiracy behind the incident occurred on May 2, 2003, was spread beyond the boundaries of the fishing hamlet in Kozhikode district.
They also expect that the ‘dark secrets’ of the murder of the nine persons would be revealed. “All these years, we have been following up this case with this demand. We are sure that there was a bigger conspiracy. It is certain that the assailants came from various parts of the State. There is an element of terror in the incident,” said Araya Samajam spokesperson T Murukeshan.
The Araya Samajam has been pointing fingers at certain bureaucrats accused in wealth amassment cases, who had either extended support to perpetrators of the heinous crime or prevented/delayed conduct of a fair investigation into it.
“Why some police officers tried to prevent interrogation of certain influential leaders? Money flowed from various sources and reached certain individuals, ultimately hushing up the demand for investigation into the conspiracy,” said Murukeshan.
According to the Araya Samajam, their cause was supported by the RSS and Hindu Aikyavedi. Of all the governments that ruled the State since then, only then Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan sent a letter favouring their demand. “The lapse of time is a cause of concern as it may affect scrutiny of materiel evidences. The arguments against the CBI probe was that the the accused were already punished. Here, the case being taken up by the CBI is a separate one filed by the Crime branch into the conspiracy,” said BJP president Kummanam Rajaekharan who had met various State and Central ministers along with Araya Samajam leaders with the demand for CBI inquiry into the conspiracy. Then, Kummanam was a leader of the Hindu Aikya Vedi. He wants the investigation report by the Crime Branch to be made the base for the CBI probe.
“The crime committed by those those who abetted the violence is graver than those who committed it. Mere letters favouring a probe won’t serve the purpose. Both the Fronts that ruled the State committed a culpable crime by ignoring the demand. They might have been concerned about the vote bank,” he added.