Reactions and Protests
The Deputy Chief Minister R. R. Patil, who also heads the home department of the state, justified the police action against Rahul Raj, saying: "I fully justify the police action. If someone is firing at the police, they will not be silent spectators. Police opened fire at Rahul Raj only after he refused to surrender or hand over his revolver to the police. The police had no option but to fire at him". The killing of Rahul Raj sparked a row between the politicians of Bihar and Maharashtra with several parties demanding a judicial probe into the incident. The father of Rahul Raj, K.P. Singh, earlier said he would appeal to President of India Pratibha Patil for justice. Unable to meet President Pratibha Patil to seek justice, he planned to file a writ petition in the supreme court and seek justice from National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).
Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, also from the state of Bihar, joined hands with his archrivals Nitish Kumar and Ram Vilas Paswan to condemn the killing of Bihari youth Rahul Raj and demanded action. According to Lalu, the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had assured him of taking proper action in the matter. Former Delhi Police chief and the current Nagaland Governor Nikhil Kumar (then a MP from Bihar) also heavily criticised the police action. JD(U) MPs from Bihar resigned to protest Rahul Raj's murder. The move came after one of the doctors doing post-mortem claimed that one of the bullets that hit him may have been fired from close range. However, the autopsy report on Rahul Raj revealed that he had been shot from a distance of 4 metres. The Lok Sabha speaker Somnath Chatterjee have accepted the resignation of five Janata Dal (United) MPs' resignation Though the Maharashtra government offered a compensation of Rs 2 lakh to the youth's family, however, the relatives turned down the offer. The MNS general secretary Shirish Parkar accused the ruling Congress and NCP parties trying to appease both Marathis and North Indians and their leaders.
Some of the reactions of eminent people on the incident are as follows:
| “ | The police did the right thing. Those who take the law in their hands, will be dealt with in the same way. | ” |
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—R R Patil, Home minister of Maharashtra |
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| “ | The Bihar Government and the people of the state share the view that a CBI inquiry is necessary to bring out the truth. After all, why a young man carrying a country made pistol, who could have been easily overpowered, was shot dead by the police? The people of the state have every right to know. | ” |
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—Nitish Kumar, Chief Minister of Bihar |
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| “ | It is unfortunate, if this has not struck him. As per media reports, Rahul Raj, killed by Mumbai Police, was gunning for Raj Thackeray. We will never know the truth. His killing by the police is really unfortunate. Had he been taken alive he could have clarified his intentions. But it is clear that he was not a criminal and still the Mumbai Police treated him as one. It is tragic that the country's premier police force should gloat over a grievously botched-up operation for Rahul could have been disarmed through even a simple use of tear smoke. It was not one of those hostage situations where the police did not have a clear view or access to the hostage taker. The compulsions of the police to not even attempt the classic negotiation method are not known. After all photographs published in the newspapers show, Rahul was carrying a country made firearm which is hardly a lethal weapon that should have scared the crack team of Mumbai Police. We must not gloss over this tragic incident in which a young man was needlessly killed by impatient policemen. It led to a condemnable tragedy. We need to know why this happened. Only an impartial enquiry will help. | ” |
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—Nikhil Kumar (now Governor of Nagaland), Member of Parliament, former commissioner of police, Delhi |
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| “ | Rahul Raj was not a criminal. His intention was to draw public and government attention to the tirade started by MNS activists against north Indians. Rahul had no past criminal record and so one cannot compare his case with other encounters in which hardened criminals are killed by the police. | ” |
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—M N Singh, former commissioner of police, Mumbai> |
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Laloo Yadav later tried to encash this incident politically by getting the father of Rahul Raj to campaign for him.
The Supreme court on November 10, 2008, refused a judicial inquiry in the encounter of Rahul Raj.
Read more about this topic: Rahul Raj Encounter
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