Long ago a great person said that honesty is the best policy, but, was he right? What happened in the Industrial Katni District in the heart of India i.e., Madhya Pradesh proves that being honest is a bane. If you are honest, you will be punished.
The story starts with a Hawala scam worth ₹500 crores. The people involved included a prominent minister, some officials of the ruling party and some of the minister’s close aides. The investigation was being conducted by an honest IPS officer, SP Gaurav Tiwari. Evidence was gathered and the names were going to be disclosed but on the day of the disclosure, a notification came from the government transferring the SP. It was the second transfer of this officer in just 6 months. He had been previously transferred for taking action against the wood mafia in Balaghat which involved the officer of I.G. Level.
The day this order came, thousands of people took to the roads including women, children, senior citizens and people from every walk of life. They were demanding the cancellation of the transfer. The Industrial Katni District observed sheher band (city strike) for 2 days by people closing their shops voluntarily and gathering to support the non-violent protests.
The government, however, has not taken any action yet. Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan says that the transfer was routine and the defaulters will not go unpunished. The matter is now in consideration with the PMO. The state government and ruling party is trying to protect their minister. The new SP says that the investigation should be restarted as it didn’t have sufficient evidence. It seems as if he is trying to washout the matter.
The good thing is that the public is still protesting, demanding their hero back. The worst is that even after 6 days there is no action on the part of government.