Udupi: Edu Encounter - Social Worker Yashodha and Former SP Murugan Appear before Court

Udupi, Sep 5:
After almost 34 months, the much controversial and talked about
case of Edu encounter came for hearing before the District
Sessions court here on Monday September 4.

On the first day, the two persons who have been very much linked with
the case, Yashodha, an alleged Naxalite who had survived in the
encounter with injuries and S Murugan, the then district superintendent
of police attended the court proceedings.The sources said that the
other police personnel whose name is involved in the case, Ashokan
will appear before the court on Tuesday.

It could be recalled that a police team led by SP Murugan and DCIB
inspector Ashokan had ambushed a house of one Ramappa Poojary at Edu
near Karkala here under the pretext that some suspected Naxalites were
hiding inside the said house,the police had shot dead an unarmed
Parvati alias Sumathi, a resident of Koppa.

After entering the house another unarmed social worker Hajima alias
Usha too had been shot dead while two other Naxalites Anand and
Vishnu had managed to escape during the siege.
The only reason Yashodha had survived was because she had hidden
in the loft while the trigger happy police had finished off
two young unarmed girlsin their teens.

While the police claimed that it was an encounter, many human
rights organizations and intellectuals had condemned the attack and
termed it as murder. Police however, maintained that, the Naxalite
had started firing first instead of surrendering.

Yashodha, who was arrested then, was remanded for judicial
custody later.She had recently been released on bail.Police had
also filed a case against Hajima, Yashodha, Vishnu and
Anand in this regard.

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