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A year on, Manjunath remembered
Published on Sun, Nov 19, 2006 at 09:33, Updated on Sun, Nov 19, 2006 at 19:07 in 
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Kolar (Karnataka): It's a year since IIM Lucknow graduate and Indian Oil Corporation employee Manjunath was brutally murdered by the oil mafia when he tried to check petrol adulteration in Lakhimpur Kheri, Uttar Pradesh.
“He (Manjunath) was doing his duty. He never thought this will happen. We never thought this will happen,” Manjunath's father, 59-year-old M Shanmugam says, who hasn't thought about anything else for the last one year.
M Shanmugam’s 20-by-30 home in Kolar is decorated with photographs of his son and memories are all that remain.
Manjunath, 26, was murdered on November 19 last year but so far only eight people have been arrested in the case.
"They should be hanged, they should all be hanged. There's no other punishment, then only other people will learn. Our government is delaying this," M Shanmugam says.
Manjunath's mother Pramila is still in a state of shock and remembers his last call when he sang to her.
The family says that the compensation from the Central Government can't bring any solace. “I'm prepared to give back all the money. I want my son, I'm prepared to give back everything,” M Shanmugam pleads.
However, Manjunath's life, and death, has changed the lives of many others. For batchmates at IIM, he is more than just the Manju they knew. His classmates have launched a Manjunath Shanmugam Trust in his memory.
“The immediate objective is to ensure quick justice and the broader objective is to improve governance in the public life. On November 19, two national initiatives will be launched - a national RTI helpline and the Manjunath Shanmugam integrity award - for individuals like Manjunath who uphold the virtues of truth and honesty,” Founder, Manjunath Shanmugam Trust, H Jaishankar says.
Manjunath was Karnataka's Satyendra Dubey, a public servant who gave up his life fighting corruption. A year after his death, his family is still trying to get over the incident and they probably never will. But one hopes that the campaign against corruption launched by his friends will keep Manjunath's ideals alive.
Catch special stories, live reports and a special show, Justice for Manjunath, at 2000 hours IST on CNN-IBN with Bhupendra Chaubey.
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