'Khairlanji massacre probe to be handed to CBI'

Mumbai, Nov 14: The Maharashtra Government today decided to hand over the probe into the massacre of a Dalit family in Khairlanji village in Bhandara district of Vidarbha region to the CBI.

This was announced by Deputy Chief Minister R R Patil while talking to reporters here at Mantralaya.

He said the state government would write to the Centre, requesting the probe be handed over to the CBI. The decision was taken after various dalit organisations demanded that the case be handed over to the CBI for conducting transparent and unbiased investigations.

Four members of the Bhotlange family were massacred by a mob in the village on the night of September 30. So far, 44 persons have been arrested by the local police. Last week,the case was handed over to the CID. However, protests over non-action against the guilty continued in Nagpur, resulting in sporadic acts of violence.

Replying to questions, Mr Patil said he had never said that there was prima facie evidence of a naxalite hand in the agitation to protest against the crime in Nagpur last week. ''My statement was quoted out of context,'' he clarified.

When asked about the police lathi charge on a morcha of blind persons in Azad Maidan last evening, Mr Patil admitted the police lapse, saying that the incident could have been handled in a better way. He also apologised for the lathi charge incident.

He said a delegation of the National Blind Federation, led by D P Jadhav, had met him and apologised for the conduct of the demonstrators while dealing with the police yesterday. Mr Patil said their demands of non receipt of honorarium to unemployed blind persons, non availability of writers during their examinations and government jobs would be considered. A meeting would be convened to discuss the demands and problems by November 22.

Mr Patil said Additional CP of Hyderabad crime branch Rajiv Trivedi handed over the demand draft of Rs ten lakh as the prize money to the Mumbai police announced by Andhra Pradesh government in May this year after they had cracked the daring jewellery showroom dacoity case in Hyderabad in 72 hours.

The dacoity was worth Rs 5.80 crore consisting 30 kg gold, silver, precious stones and diamonds. The accused were arrested in Mumbai. Mumbai police chief A N Roy and Joint CP (crime) Ms Meera Borwankar were present on the occasion, he added.

UNI