ADGP Gaonkar’s transfer is contempt of court – Justice Michael Saldanha

ADGP Gaonkar’s transfer is contempt of court – Justice Michael Saldanha

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangalore, Nov 30, 2011: Speaking on the sudden transfer of Jeevan Kumar V. Gaonkar, the Lokayukta official, at a press conference held in Mangalore on Nov 29 Tuesday, Justice Michael Saldanha said that anybody who interferes with judicial proceedings will be punished for contempt of court as per Section 2 of the Contempt of Court Act. If the transfer of an official is beneficial for the accused, it will also be considered as contempt of court, he added. 

Urging the media to highlight this issue and help the Lokayukta to eradicate corruption in the state, Justice Saldanha said that if the media ignores this issue, the Lokayukta’s efforts will come to naught. He also stated that ADGP Gaonkar was transferred simply because he was working with great integrity and honesty.

Regarding the issue of manual scavenging, he said that he will take up this matter in the high court, requesting the court to pass the required directives to ban manual scavenging. 

Speaking about encounter deaths, he said that 98 percent of the encounters all over India have no justification. He said that, of the 17 cases he has investigated in Karnataka, not a single one of them needed an encounter. He accused police officers of creating fake encounters and labeling the deceased as “Maoist,” “anti-social element,” “terrorist,” and others. Sympathizing with the Maoists, he said that state policies have forced certain communities to take up arms in their fight for their rights. 

Flaying the police department, he said that the police stand accused of not even following the proper legal procedures required while making an arrest. The police also arrest innocent people under the excuse of holding an enquiry, he criticized. 

P. B. D’Sa, the PUCL president, and other office bearers of PUCL were also present.