The CPI(M) and the VCK, allies of the ruling DMK, on Friday demanded that the investigation in the Vengaivayal case be transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
In a statement, CPI(M) State secretary P. Shanmugam said the Crime Branch-Criminal Investigation Department (CB-CID) stating in its charge-sheet that human faeces were mixed in the water tank by the villagers themselves owing to a rivalry was unacceptable. It was unfair to blame members of the affected community in a hurry to close the case, he added.
VCK president Thol. Thirumavalavan expressed shock at the police naming three persons belonging to the Scheduled Caste (SC) community as the accused and said the charge sheet filed by the CB-CID should be rejected. “This case revolves around the contamination of drinking water with human waste, targeting the SC community. It is shocking and unacceptable that the police have named members of the same community as the accused. Therefore, we emphasise that the court must not accept the charge sheet filed by the CB-CID and order further investigation.”
He further pointed out: “From the early stages, allegations surfaced that the police were biased against members of the SC community in their investigation. These concerns led to demands for a probe by the CBI. However, even under the CB-CID, there has been an undue delay in identifying the culprits. Despite stern instructions from the Madras High Court, the police failed to name the culprits. Now, with the pending petitions in the court demanding a CBI probe in the case, it appears that this charge-sheet was filed in a hurry to prevent the court from ordering a CBI investigation…”
