Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa, who visited the curfew-bound Mangaluru on Saturday, promised an inquiry into the violence during the anti-Citizenship (Amendment) Act protests, which left two dead on Thursday.
Addressing presspersons after reviewing the law and order situation in the coastal city along with senior police officers and officials of the district administration, Mr. Yediyurappa did not reveal the nature of the inquiry and said no time frame could be fixed at this juncture for its completion.
He said that the nature of the investigation would be decided only in consultation with Home Minister Basavaraj Bommai, who also visited the city with him. The Opposition and civil society groups have been demanding a judicial inquiry.
Even as he defended the police action, Mr. Yediyurappa said no one was happy with what happened on Thursday. “The police were compelled to use force to deter the surging crowds. They tried to storm a police station,” he said. The Chief Minister also said the crowd had tried to gain entry into the armoury of the station. “If they had gained entry, the situation would have turned serious,” he added.
Mr. Yediyurappa said that the curfew imposed under the jurisdiction of the Mangaluru Police Commissionerate would be relaxed on Sunday and lifted on Monday. However, the prohibitory orders are to continue for a few more days.
Meeting with families
The Chief Minister met the grief-stricken teenage daughter and son of Jalil Kudroli, who died during Thursday’s violence in Mangaluru, at the New Circuit House. The two children could hardly speak when Mr. Yediyurappa and Mr. Bommai met them. Shifani is a class 9 student while Sabil is in class 5. The leaders also met the mother and brother of Nausin, who also died in the police firing.
Mr. Yediyurappa told both sets of family members that Dakshina Kannada Deputy Commissioner Sindhu B. Rupesh would decide on the compensation to be paid to them as per the law. U.T. Khader, MLA for Mangaluru, and K.S. Mohammed Masood, president of the Muslim Central Committee, Dakshina Kannada and Udupi, were also present during this interaction.
Later in the day, the Chief Minister held talks with representatives of various religious communities separately.
