The allegation of bias leveled against the government by the Opposition is not without basis. It reflects from ex gratia granted to the kin of one murder victim while denying the other. Will a biased government give a free hand to the police?
Rashae’ K | Clarion India
ON August 3, when investigations into the murder of 23-year-old Mohammad Fazil, which took place on July 28 revealed that it was a case of revenge, the irony is not lost on anyone. Revenge for what? The killing of BJP Yuva Morcha activist Praveen Kumar Nettare who was hacked to death on July 26?
The police could not reach out to the killer/s of the Hindu activist as yet. How then the killers could know for certain that it is none else, but Fazil? Suppose they wanted to take revenge from the Muslim community for the killing of a Hindu. The question arises what makes them so sure that the murder is a handiwork of a Muslim.
Agreed, the six persons arrested by the police, in connection with Fazil’s murder confessed to the crime as a revenge for the murder of Praveen. The police must be either naïve or have made up their mind to fix the blame for the murder of the Hindutva activist on an entire community to rely on the confession of the accused including three rowdy-sheeters.
Police sources were quoted as saying that to avenge the killing of Praveen, the gang was all set to hack an individual belonging to the Muslim community on the day of Praveen’s killing. The main accused Suhas Shetty planned the killing and gathered other team members.
The police say they have yet to ascertain the antecedents of the arrested Hindutva activists, yet claim to have cracked the case. It is a mystery.
They further said that the gang had got the list of six persons belonging to the Muslim community and later zeroed in on Fazil as his personality matched that of deceased Praveen. Mangaluru Police Commissioner N. Shashikumar had stated that there was no love, dispute or any other reason for the murder of Fazil. The accused had targeted him in revenge.
All this sounds like a cock-and-bull story which won’t convince any sane person. But what one can expect from a police force caught between “government’s diktats” and the call of duty. The allegation of bias leveled against the government by the Opposition is not without basis. It reflects from ex gratia granted to the kin of one murder victim while denying the other. Will a biased government give a free hand to the police?
This is not one off case to have exposed the Karnataka Police. At least 21 murders of political nature have been reported in the state between January 2018 and June 2022. But hardly any reached to a logical conclusion resulting in the conviction.
In the meantime, the Karnataka Police department announced a special drive to be conducted in the coastal district to rein in on communal and anti-social elements. Hope, through this drive, they don’t intend to deflect the focus from the real culprits behind the macabre dance of death in this part of the state which has been deliberately thrown into the cauldron of communal violence so that some politicos could experiment their divisive agenda for electoral gains.
To quote Rahul Gandhi Karnataka has never faced violence like it is facing today. Citing incidents leading to a communal divide in the state, he said, “If we ask a US citizen what they think of Karnataka today, they will tell you the state has never faced violence like it is facing today.”
In fact, it’s the sectarian approach to the law and order issue that caused more harm to the image of the hitherto peaceful state than the violence triggered in the name of religion. Against this backdrop, the state administration plumbing newer lows is not a remote possibility in the wake of the growing demand from Hindutva hotheads, who are the core support base of the ruling BJP in the state, for “Yogi Model” or “bulldozer” politics.
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The views expressed here are author’s personal