As Indore violence spreads, Congress demands judicial probe

India's News.Net
Friday 4th July, 2008 (IANS)

The Congress in Madhya Pradesh Friday demanded a judicial probe into the violence that killed five people in Indore city during the shutdown called over the Amarnath shrine land row.

Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee president Suresh Pachouri accused the police of being hand-in-glove with the protesters during the shutdown called Thursday by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) to protest the Jammu and Kashmir government's decision to cancel allotment of forest land to the Amarnath shrine.

On Thursday, four people were killed as the shutdown took a communal turn, prompting the administration to clamp curfew in four areas. There was no let-up in violence Friday as tension spread and the administration had to extend the curfew to the entire city.

Pachauri said that the violence could have been averted if the district administration had been remained vigilant. He alleged that the police not only remained a mute spectator, but also turned perpetrators of violence in many places like Satna.

'We, the Congressmen, therefore, demand a judicial inquiry by a sitting high court judge into the entire matter,' he said.

'We have submitted a memorandum to Governor Balram Jhakar, urging him to utilize his powers and also issue directives to the state government to take proper action to check the violence,' Pachauri said.

The Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee also held a daylong sit-in protest at the busy Roshanara square here, condemning the widespread violence during Thursday's shutdown.

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