Terming Bakoria encounter by the security forces in Palamu killing 12 persons as a sheer homicide by the Government, former Chief Minister and JVM Chief Babulal Marandi demanded judicial inquiry by a sitting judge of High Court in the matter alongwith all other suspicious deaths which took place after the BJP came into power in 2014. Marandi while speaking to the media persons at the party office on Thursday also added that the State Government had been using police officials as its goons for political benefits.
Jharkhand Police during a joint operation with Central Reserve Force (CRPF) on June 9, 2015, had gunned down 12 Maoists near Bakoria village of Palamu intercepting two speeding vehicles as the Maoists on board allegedly started firing on them.
The death came as a grave embarrassment for the State administration, which is already hiding its face from around a dozen of cases of police torture and harassment of 'innocent citizens' this year itself.
"It could be easily understood the law and order situation in the State and how secure are the people here? The State Government is trying to suppress the matter and the officials trying to expedite the investigation are being transferred," said Marandi. Politicians in the State are being compelled to think over keeping the security provided by the Government, he added.
"Intention of the State Government could be understood as even after Election Commission's direction to initiate criminal proceedings, no action was taken against ADG Anurag Gupta for allegedly adopting corrupt practices to influence 2016 Rajya Sabha polls," Marandi said. The way State Government was trying to put the whole episode under the carpet is a matter of serious concern, he added.
Marandi further said that following the media reports over revelation of police officer Harish Pathak regarding Bakoria Encounter it appears that the State Government has started resorting to hooliganism as killing a dozen of innocent people is nothing but homicide.
"Remarkably, Harish Pathak was threatened by the senior police officials for revealing the facts of Bakoria Encounter," said Marandi.
Referring to another suspicious death of a 16 year old tribal boy Rupesh Swansi, who died in Police custody in Bundu police station in July last year, Marandi alleged that even after the matter was taken to the High Court and Supreme court, the DSP responsible for the death has not been arrested, nor any coercive steps were taken against him by the State Government.
"Until the responsible officials get punished, such incidents of deaths will continue to take place," said the former Chief Minister. Similar is the status of Topchanchi shoot out case following which a police official committed suicide following he was being implicated in the incident even after the fact that the incident was not in his area, he added