Agnivesh seeks probe

Activist Swami Agnivesh met Chhattisgarh chief minister Raman Singh today in Raipur and demanded a judicial enquiry into the alleged police atrocities in Dantewada in the middle of March.

Activist Swami Agnivesh met Chhattisgarh chief minister Raman Singh on Sunday in Raipur and demanded a judicial enquiry into the alleged police atrocities in Dantewada in the middle of March.

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This came a day after the convoy led by the swami was attacked by an agitated mob, apparently provoked into doing so by supporters of the Salwa Judum, an anti-Maoist outfit of tribals enjoying state patronage, and adjunct policemen going by the name special police officers (SPOs).

In a similar vein, Swami Agnivesh is seeking a judicial probe into the death of Maoist Cherukuri Rajkumar alias Azad in Andhra Pradesh in July last year. He is his own pleader in the Supreme Court on the issue.

As regards the Dantewada incident, the swami, however, said he had forgiven those who manhandled him. However, he demanded strong action against Dantewada district police chief SRP Kalluri, now removed, and sought his suspension.

"An FIR should be lodged against him," he said, though he expressed no complaint against collector R Prasanna, who too has been removed.

Meanwhile, Ravindra Choubey, Congressman and leader of the opposition in the Chhattisgarh assembly, said: "We will demand from the state government (an explanation) on the ground reality and the situation prevailing in Dantewada."