MLA criticises Justice Hegde's remark on mining-hit people

A BJP legislator in Goa today asked mining dependent people to strongly oppose former Karnataka Lokayukta Santosh Hegde's alleged remark equating them with underworld don Dawood Ibrahim.
"I don't know why you all didn't react to his statement. His effigy should have been burnt. He called us Dawood's men," BJP legislator Pramod Sawant told a gathering of mining dependent people, in the presence of Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar.
However, Parrikar quickly interrupted asking people not to resolve to such action against Justice (retd) Hegde but said he should not have made such comments.
"There is no need to burn any effigy of anyone. You all have proved that you are not Dawood's people by not responding to his statement. Gandhian style response is the best for such statements," the Chief Minister said.

Parrikar further claimed that Hegde's statement was misinterpreted by the media.
Reacting to the financial help extended by the Goa government to the people affected with closure of mining activity in the state, Justice Hegde had on March 24 said, "We cannot ask illegalities to be perpetrated because some people are going to remain hungry... Frankly speaking (this is like) many people losing their jobs if Dawood Ibrahim were to be arrested."
The retired Supreme Court judge, as Karnataka Lokayukta, had authored a voluminous report on illegal mining in the southern state. His findings had created a political upheaval in the BJP-ruled state.