The Hubballi Dharwad Police Commissionerate has provided a gunman to Neha’s father and municipal councillor Niranjan Hiremath, while also posting two police personnel at his residence.
The move comes a day after Chief Minister Siddaramaiah visited the Hiremaths. During the Chief Minister’s visit, Mr. Hiremath conveyed to him that he faced death threat from unknown people in the aftermath of his daughter’s murder.
Mr. Hiremath had said that on the pretext of condoling the death, a few suspicious people entered his house and video-graphed his daughter’s bedroom. The developments indicated threat to the family members and so a detailed investigation should be carried out, he had urged.
Consequently, on Friday, the Police Commissionerate provided a gunman to Mr. Hiremath and posted two police personnel for security at his residence in Bidnal of Hubballi.
Bommai meets family
Meanwhile, the former Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai met Neha’s family members on Friday and consoled them.
Terming the murder highly condemnable, he said that it was an incident that made civilised society hang its head in shame. However, the Congress made an attempt to mislead and protect the guilty, he added.
Although Neha’s family suspected that there are others involved in the case, the government has wiped its hand off the case by handing it over to the CID. If the government has no intention of protecting anyone, then it should hand it over to the CBI for a thorough investigation, he said.
On Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s charge that the Opposition is politicising the issue, Mr. Bommai said that if a girl student got killed on college campus in broad daylight, can the Chief Minister expect the Opposition to keep quiet.
“If he were in Opposition, will he keep quiet? The whole State is shocked and seers, organisations and students are protesting. Are they politicising the issue?” he asked.
Mr. Bommai said that the police getting the accused remanded to judicial custody soon after arresting him instead of interrogating him indicated that investigation had taken the wrong route. Till date those against whom Niranjan Hiremath has expressed suspicion have not been questioned. It is because of the lapses by the Congress that the murder has taken political colour. At least now it should be handed over to the CBI, he said.
