Click to play videoNagpur: Over 39 days after Bhaiyalal Bhotmange lost four members of his family in a caste outrage, the cry for justice has finally reached the Maharashtra Secretariat.
The state government has announced a compensation of Rs 6 lakh to the kin of the victims. Investigations have also gained momentum, with 44 suspects being taken into custody so far. A fast-track court has also been constituted to hold the trial.
Meanwhile, the issue is threatening to snowball into a major controversy with protestors on Wednesday entering the Chief Minister's Secretariat, seeking justice. A group of Dalits also staged a dharna outside the Chief minister Vilasrao Deshmukh's office in Mumbai.
Dalits in Vidarbha are also continuing with their protest, demanding action against the killers of Bhaiyalal Bhotmange's family.
They claim the autopsy report was botched up to cover up the rape of a 17-year-old victim. The government says the protests are stage-managed.
"The protesters are being motivated by outsiders. There seems to be a bigger design and people instigating these protests are not doing this simply because of sympathy for them. We also have information that some Naxal supporters were behind these protests. They also took part in the recent attacks on the police," RR Patil, Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister, claims.
Over the last three days, Vidarbha has been witnessing violent protests. Following this, the administration has suspended three local police officers. It has also handed over the probe to the CID.
On their part, the protesters point to the delay in investigations. "If the incident was related to any top officer, they would have solved the case in 15 days. But this incident is related to poor people like us.
So, there is no progress even though more than one-and-a-half months have passed," Bhaiyalal Bhotmange points out.
"So many days have passed, but the perpetrators have not been brought to book. They must be severely punished," claims a protester.
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