What has aggravated the woes of the Government has been the negligence of the police and its failure to nab the culprits so far. Nine days after the murder, which has traumatised Kerala, the police is still groping in the dark. The enormity of the police’s failure can be seen from the fact that, nine days after the murder, a fresh probe has been ordered and the earlier police team which investigated the murder has been disbanded!

Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala and Chief Minister Oommen Chandy would have the people believe that the police is doing a fine job. But the fact that a fresh probe is on is an open admission of the fact that the police has bungled badly in the case, which has become a major electoral issue, relegating other issues to the background.

The panic-stricken Chandy Government is now accusing the Opposition Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the BJP of trying to politicise the tragedy. The Government’s anxiety can be understood as the issue has the potential to inflict enormous electoral damage to the prospects of the UDF. Hence its desperation to make it out as if all is well on the investigation front.

A jubilant opposition has promptly pounced on the issue to milk it for electoral advantage. Both the LDF and the BJP have accused the Government of having failed dismally in ensuring the safety of women in the state.

The Modi Government has also jumped into the fray, sensing its potential to embarrass the Chandy Government. The BJP Government has already sent a minister for an on- the-spot study besides seeking a report from the State Government. Home Minister Rajnath Singh went a step further, saying that the Centre would order a CBI probe if the demand came from the State!

The Chandy Government’s loud protestations about attempts at politicisation of the murder sound hollow. Can the UDF leaders say that they would have desisted from exploiting the issue for political ends if they were in the position of the LDF and the BJP? The answer to that question is a big No.

Meanwhile, the LDF has alleged that there were several lapses in the procedures adopted by the police in the case. For instance, a complaint had been lodged with the police weeks ago by the mother-girl duo who had been staying together in their one-room tenement. If only the police had acted promptly and given protection, the murder could have been avoided. The police have not been able to give a convincing reason for their failure to act on the complaint.

Again, the police failed to seal the house soon after the murder. That has resulted in vital evidence being destroyed by the rush of people into the area. Moreover, the post-mortem was done, not by a police surgeon, but by a post-graduate student. Nor was the post-mortem videographed as is required under the law. The police also failed to inform the district collector of the incident, as mandated by the law.

And, last, but not the least, the police cremated the body in haste. Legal experts say this was a serious lapse as the body should have been preserved so that further post-mortem could be conducted, if need be. The police are trying to wash their hands claiming that the decision to cremate the body was that of the relatives. That claim has been exposed with the revelation that it was the police SI who gave the relatives the permission to cremate the body!

Whatever the denouement, one thing is for sure. The issue has given the opposition a powerful weapon to wield against the Government. And that the focus of the poll debate has shifted from other issues to the murder has become clear from the outrageous and angry reaction of the people. And that is exactly why the UDF leaders are worried.

There is a popular saying in Malayalam. “Markadasya surapanam; marge vrishchika damsham”(a monkey, already under the influence of liquor, has been stung by a scorpion,too.”). Well, that, more or less, is the plight the Chandy Government finds itself in. And that too, with the crucial assembly elections just a week away. No wonder, the shoulders of the UDF have slumped; and they sport a crest-fallen look. (IPA Service)