April 25, 2007

Press Statement

The Polit Bureau of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) has issued the following statement:

Gujarat Encounter Killings: Handover Cases to CBI

The arrest of three senior Gujarat IPS officers for the murder in a fake encounter of Sohrabuddin Sheikh reveals the lawlessness of the authorities and the shocking state of affairs under the Modi government.  But it is the tip of the iceberg. There have been reportedly a dozen “encounters” by the Gujarat police since 2002. The present arrests were made only because of the courage shown by the brother of the deceased to take the case to the Supreme Court which ordered the Gujarat Government to conduct a CID enquiry. The Gujarat Government’s shameful communal stance provides the cover for delinquent police officers to kill innocent people with no fear of questions being asked as long as they are termed terrorists and as long as they belong to the minority community.

The conduct of the Gujarat Government in the case including taking the case away from the CID officer after she filed the damning interim report makes it clear that the Government cannot be entrusted with the case. This is all the more so since the BJP Home Minister of Rajasthan has defended one of the accused police personnel who is from Rajasthan. Moreover the wife of the deceased is still missing and feared murdered.

In these circumstances, the Polit Bureau of the CPI(M) demands a CBI investigation into the case of the murder of Sohrabuddin Sheikh and his missing wife, and also an investigation into  such encounter killings since 2002.