A protest in Shimla on Saturday. (Express Photo by Pradeep Kumar)
Even after the Himachal Pradesh government’s decision to hand over the case of rape-and-murder of a Class X student to the CBI, angry residents and students continued to protest and stage mass dharnas across Shimla and nearby towns like Solan on Saturday.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to get the probe done by the CBI expeditiously. The students, belonging to SFI and ABVP, boycotted classes in colleges and took out a procession on Mall Road in Shimla. They later held a dharna at the Ridge to show solidarity with the victim’s family.
“Police bungled up the investigation. The real culprits are still roaming free and being shielded by the police since they belong to well-to-do families. Only some labourers from Nepal and Uttarakhand have been booked by fabricating a false story. Until the victim’s family is satisfied with the investigation, the protests will continue,” said Latika, one of the protesters.
The SIT, which was investigating the case, has so far arrested six persons, including the son of a leading orchardist and driver-cum-munshi (manager) of another Kotkhai orchardist. The other four arrested are labourers, two each from Nepal and Garhwal.
