Belagavi: Parents of the minor girl have decided to withdraw the POCSO case filed by them against the assaulted KSRTC bus conductor and have also released a video statement clarifying themselves.
"Our daughter was coming from Belagavi to Balekundri. There was an altercation over purchasing a ticket. We are also Kannada fans and have no caste differences. It is not right to spread false propaganda about Kannada and Marathi without any reason," the parents said in the video.
"The altercation turned into a fight of between Karnataka and Maharashtra. Our daughter has been unjustly treated. We are withdrawing the case and this should be stopped here. We are voluntarily taking back the case and there is no pressure on us," they clarified.
City Police Commissioner Yada Martin Marbanyang responded to the development saying, the girl's parents have decided to withdraw the POCSO case and said that they are also Kannadigas. "We will examine the video and consider it as evidence in our investigation. We have immediately changed the investigating officer and handed over the case to the ACP. Also, I have instructed the investigating officer to collect this video and record the statements. The Marihal police station circle police inspector, who had registered the POCSO case, has been transferred elsewhere and an investigation will be conducted against him," Marbanyang said.
On February 21, bus conductor, Mahadevappa Mallappa Hukkeri (51) was assaulted in Sanna Balekundri village of Belagavi taluk for not replying to a passenger in Marathi. The conductor had complained that he was threatened and beaten up while giving tickets. The injured conductor was admitted to the district hospital, where he is undergoing treatment.