Following a complaint lodged by D. Polappa, a Dalit farmer, Hosapet Rural police have registered a First Information Report (FIR) against Anand Singh, Minister for Tourism, Environment and Ecology and MLA for Vijayanagara and three others, under Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989. and several Sections of Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The other three who were booked in the same case are Hanumantappa, Mariyappa and Hulugappa, the associates of Mr. Singh.
In his complaint, Mr. Polappa had alleged that Mr.Singh, his three associates and 25 others came to his house at 1.45 p.m. on Tuesday and threatened to burn him alive and also evict him from his house.
Before lodging the complaint, Mr. Polappa and his family members attempted self-immolation in front of the office of the Superintendent of Police by pouring petrol on themselves. However, they were prevented from setting themselves ablaze and rushed to the hospital by the police.
In his complaint, Mr. Polappa also mentioned the continued harassment and threatening from Mr. Singh and his associates for the last 6-7 months after he held a press conference and exposed Mr. Singh’s alleged encroachment of government lands for the construction of his new bungalow in Hosapet.
“I had released the relevant documents in the press conference to show how Mr. Singh had encroached canal area, which was government land. I had filed a complaint with concerned government authority along with the documents. After 2-3 days, Mr. Singh and M.K. Hunumantappa came to my house and threatened me. He also forced me to call a press meet and admit the allegations as false… He again came to my house three months ago and threatened again,” Mr. Polappa said in the complaint.
Speaking to The Hindu, Superintendent of Police Arun K. said that the police team had started investigating the case against Mr. Singh. “The police team which is investigating the case is presently collecting the evidence from all sources. It is at present gathering the CCTV footages and video and audio clips. We would have a clear picture by this weekend,” Mr. Arun told The Hindu.
When asked about the earlier threats that Mr. Polappa mentioned in the complaint, Mr. Arun said that neither any of police stations nor his office had received any complaint about them. “This is the first complaint on the issue and we have taken immediate action,” Mr. Arun said.
Demand for enquiry
Taking to Twitter on Wednesday, Congress questioned why the government had not initiated legal action against Mr. Singh who had encroached on the government land to build his house. It demanded an enquiry into the allegations, protection for the person who raised his voice against the encroachment and removal of Mr. Singh from the Council of Ministers.
