With eight Himachal Pradesh police officials including an IGP in CBI net over the custodial death of an accused in rape-and-murder of a minor school girl in Shimla, the state government today came under fire from the opposition here.
The Himachal Pradesh state secretariat of the Communist Party of India (CPI-M) lashed out at the government and alleged that 'politicization' of police and administration was responsible for spurt in heinous crime like rape and murder. The party alleged that criminals and anti-social elements are being shielded.
Former state secretary of the party Rakesh Singha demanded that the staff on duty in the Kotkhai police station on the intervening night of July 17 and 18-- when Suraj was killed in the lockup--be provided adequate security as their lives were under threat.
The ABVP also staged a demonstration in front of office of Deputy Commissioner and demanded resignation of the chief minister.
BJP MP from Hamirpur Anurag Thakur also held the chief minister responsible for alleged conspiracy in the investigation of the case.
He also demanded resignation of the HP CM over the custodial death of an accused in the rape case.
"Whether Virbhadra Singh intended to give justice to 'Gudiya'or was trying totamper with evidence toshieldthe guilty," he said.
Thakur further expressed doubt if Himachal government "used" the state police to remove the evidence of in the case.
He said, "the Gudiya case is a blot on Himachal and the state government was trying to save the accused instead of punishing the guilty.
"Sadly, instead of sharing the grievances of the family of the deceased, wife of the chief minister pressurized them for not conducting a CBI inquiry into the matter."
"Virbhadra Singh has hurt the dignity of the office of the chief minister and hence he has no right to be the head of this beautiful, peaceful state," he said.
The BJP MP alleged that the chief minister is busy "setting" things for himself in Delhi to save his political future.
"Now, it is the right time that the CM should resign and president's rule should be imposed in Himachal Pradesh," said Thakur.
Inspector General of Himachal Pradesh Police Zahur Haidar Zaidi and seven other policemen were arrested by the CBI yesterday in connection with the custodial death of Suraj Singh, a 29-year-old labourer from Nepal.
The CBI today brought the eight Himachal Pradesh police officials, including the IGP, to its headquarters in New Delhi for questioning in connection with the case.
Singh, who was a suspect in the rape-and-murder of a minor school girl in Kotkhai area of Shimla in early July, was among six people arrested by the local police.
He was allegedly killed by a co-accused at the Kotkhai police station last month, triggering a massive public outrage.
The CBI, which was later handed over the probe into the case by the Himachal Pradesh High Court, questioned several people before arresting Zaidi, a 1994-batch IPS officer, the then IGP (South) Manoj Joshi, the then Deputy Superintendent of Police, and six other police officials, the probe agency officials said.
The arrested accused were produced in the competent court in Shimla yesterday which sent them to the CBI custody till September 4.
The Class X student had gone missing on July 4 and her naked body was recovered from Haliala forests in Kotkhai on July 6.
"The CBI has constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by a Superintendent of Police and an Additional SP and a Deputy SP, and taken over the investigation of both the cases," the CBI had said earlier.
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