BANGALORE: The Karnataka High Court has disposed of a petition challenging the appointment of B.R. Nanjundaiah as Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) in the Kambalapalli violence case after Mr. Nanjundaiah said that he had written to the Government asking to be excused from appearing in the case.

The State Government some time ago appointed Mr. Nanjundaiah as SPP to argue the case, in which seven Dalits were burned to death in Kambalapalli village in Kolar district on March 11, 2000.

Though the local police had taken up investigations, the Directorate of Civil Rights Enforcement (CRE) had taken over and even filed a charge-sheet.

The investigations had disclosed that seven Dalits had been locked in a house in Kambalapalli in Chintamani taluk and the house was set on fire.

The provocation for the ghastly deed was the reported stabbing of Krishna Reddy, a villager of Kamballapali, the previous day.

Tension built up between the two communities in the village when a Dalit, Venkataramanappa, was murdered at Iragamapalli, near Kambalapalli, in 1998. One of those accused in the murder was Krishna Reddy. Soon after the murder, the Dalits fled the village in fear but returned six months later following persuasion by the district administration.

The Dalits, under Venkataramanappa's brother, Sriramappa, had been allegedly waiting to take revenge.

On March 10, a group of Dalits, including Sriramappa, saw Krishna Reddy when they were alighting from a bus near the village. A group of 15 persons, including 10 Dalits, pounced on Krishna Reddy and stabbed him to death. Another reason for the simmering discontent in the village was a Dalit woman's alleged affair with a person belonging to the upper caste. Papamma reportedly had illicit relationship with a person belonging to the upper caste and this had angered her younger brother Sriramappa. In turn, Sriramappa had been harassing women of the upper castes. Both groups had filed several cases against each other. Besides, each group wanted the other to be punished.Incidentally, a day prior to the murder, two Dalits and Krishna Reddy had quarrelled on the outskirts of the village.

Soon after Krishna Reddy's murder, a group of seven Dalits, including Sriramappa and Papamma, had taken shelter in a near-by house.

Angered by the stabbing, the some people belonging to the upper castes set the house on fire. After the charges were framed, the State appointed Mr. Nanjundaiah as SPP. His appointment had been challenged by C.V. Nagesh, advocate, saying that before his appointment Mr. Nanjundaiah had appeared for one of the accused.

When the matter came up, Mr. Nanjundaiah's counsel filed a statement placing on record his decision to withdraw from the case. Justice Sreedhar Rao disposed of the petition, giving liberty to Mr. Nagesh in case the State Government issues an adverse order.

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