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Journalism of Courage
BHUJ, Sept 14: Six forest department officials were on Monday evening arrested for not acting to prevent the September 10 killing of their informer Bavji Jadeja, a confidant of Industries Minister Suresh Mehta.
They were charged under section 221 of the Indian Penal Code, which provides for the arrest of a public servant for not performing his duty and remaining a silent spectator at the scene of a crime. This is the first time the section has been applied in the state.
The arrested are divisional forest officer Nanabhai V. Kataria; sub-divisional forest officers Pratap Ler and Haresh Vankani; foresters Bhavanishankar Rateshwar and Mansukh Gadhvi; and mid-guard Govind Laxman Parmar.
Jadeja is said to have been leading a forest department team to a huge stock of illegally made charcoal in the Banni meadows of the Kutch district when he was allegedly shot dead by a mob instigated by his rival, one Bhanushali.
District superintendent of police Keshav Kumar said that the forest department officials had been armed but made no attempt whatsoever to prevent the killing. And though the killing took place at 4 p.m. the police was not informed; the police reached the remote spot in the Banni on their own, about 9:30 p.m.
What was worse, Kumar said, was the fact that Jadeja8217;s blood stains had been washed off the forest-department van in which he was travelling when attacked.
8220;They had wireless sets with them, and could have let us know of the killing at once, but they did not. quot;And cleaning the blood stains amounts to tampering with evidence, a crime,8221; the District Superintendent of Police said.
The industries minister, who was close to the victim, has all along alleged that the killing was not being investigated properly. Jadeja8217;s alleged killers are said to enjoy the patronage of Mehta8217;s rivals in the Bharatiya Janata Party BJP.
On Monday he submitted his resignation from the ministry, setting off a crisis in the party.
However, police said three of eight assailants named in the first-information report FIR had promptly been arrested, and three vans and the rifle used by them had been seized.
Police also said that 28 more persons involved in the attack had been identified, and that a posse had been sent to Mumbai to apprehend some of them.
Kumar said a special team headed by two deputy superintendents of police was investigating the case, and were it not for prompt policing of the region where the killing took place there could have been backlash by Jadeja8217;s supporters.
Contrary to Mehta8217;s views, Meghrajji Jadeja, a close relative of the victim who had taken possession of the body at the scene of crime, said he was 8220;quite satisfied8221; with the investigation and that he was against politicisation of the issue.
