Retired judge to probe Thoothukudi police firing

The Tamil Nadu government on Wednesday appointed retired judge Aruna Jagadeesan to probe the police firing during the anti-Sterlite protests in Thoothukudi on Tuesday that killed 11 people.

Chief Minister K Palaniswami said in a statement that the probe will go into the details and circumstances that prompted police to fire at the protesters.

“She will inquiry into the incident in which thousands of people defied the prohibitory orders that were imposed in Thoothukudi by the district collector and led to a law and order situation,” Palaniswami said in the statement.

Though pushed to the wall, Palaniswami had on Tuesday justified the police action and announced that families of victims would be given solatium of Rs 10 lakh each, besides a government job for the next of the kin of the deceased.

“Some of the protesters torched vehicles on the road and forced their way into the collectorate and set on fire government vehicles besides pelting stones on the premises. To bring the protests under control, the police were forced to take action...A detailed inquiry will be conducted by a retired judge,” he said in a statement.