Accused of murder: Veerji Kohli’s supporters march, stage three sit-ins

Protesters declare the FIR a sham, give evidence to verify Veerji’s alibi.

HYDERABAD:

Hundreds of supporters of Veerji Kohli, a human-rights activist who has been charged with murder, staged sit-ins at three different places as they marched for over three kilometres on Monday.

The protest walk started from Shahbaz Building - the bureaucratic headquarters of the Sindh government - where they blocked the entrance for an hour. The march ended at the press club.

Kohli has been implicated in a murder case by the Nangarparkar police in Tharparkar district and has been in hiding since then. On May 20, a man named Saleh Shoro was killed in an attack, which the Kohlis claim the Shoros led and vice versa. The Shoros say the fight was over a cow farm in Baandhi village - which belongs to the Kohlis. However, the Kohlis maintain that there is no such farm in their village.

“The Shoros nominated 14 people of the Kohli,” the Nagarparkar SHO said, adding that the Kohlis filed their own FIR, on charges of assault and theft against 10 Shoro men.

His supporters and his family, who gathered in Hyderabad from Tharparkar and Badin, called for an impartial investigation.“The Sindh inspector general of police should assign an honest officer to probe into the case,” demanded Ashuthama, a human rights activist. He alleged that Kohli has been nominated in the case on the bidding of Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Memon. “Feudal landlords Ghani Khoso and Bachal Khoso manipulated the Shoro tribe to name Veerji as a suspect,” he maintained.

Addressing the gathering, the protesters claimed that nominating Veerji in the FIR is part of a greater conspiracy to occupy the rich-in-minerals land with sweet water that the Kohlis have inhabited for centuries. “Veerji fought against oppression. This is why a voice that dared to challenge subjugation is being throttled,” said Netraj Kohli.

Punhal Sariyo contended that the landlords, in connivance with Sharjeel Memon, are leasing mines in Nangarparkar that are rich in clay deposits worth billions of rupees. “The FIR is a sham,” he declared. He even verified Veerji’s alibi. “We have handed over records of the events Veerji attended when he was in Hyderabad during the time of the incident [...] to RPO Hyderabad and DIG Mirpurkhas.”

Talking to The Express Tribune, Veerji’s wife said that she had not seen her husband for over a month. “My husband would never even think about killing anyone. He works for peace and the rights of people,” said Bhagwati.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 21^st, 2011.