Service was Shetty’s focus
SHOOT THE MESSENGER: ATTACKS ON RTI ACTIVISTS WORRY COURTS
Stanley G Pinto | TNN
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Mangalore: “He wanted to empower people through the Right to Information Act
and was crazy about social work. In reality, he was helping the state
government through RTI,” said Sandeep Shetty, brother of Satish Shetty.
Satish, a social activist, who had blown the whistle on a series of land scams
in and around Talegaon, Lonavala and Pimpri-Chinchwad, was brutally murdered by
unidentified assailants near his residence at Talegaon-Dabhade on Wednesday
morning. Sandeep told TOI from Talegoan that they had an inkling something bad
was going to happen as he was getting threatening calls from many days. “But
this (murder) was totally unexpected,” said Sandeep, who was performing the
last rites of his brother on Thursday.
“He was not materialistic like us. We had told him to get employed and make
some money for himself. But his heart was in social service and helping the
people,” pointed out Sandeep. Satish was the third of four siblings of Bhoja
and Laxmi Shetty hailing from Punchur, Bellampady village of Udupi district.
Born in Lonalava, Satish Shetty studied till matriculation. “He was not good at
studies. He was more interested in helping people and became an anticorruption
crusader,” he said. Satish started wielding the RTI Act exposing irregularities
in government offices since the past five years, which ultimately proved to be
his nemesis.
Bhoja Shetty left for Pune in the early 60s and was in the restaurant business.
Both his parents passed away recently. The family visits Punchur once a year
during the temple festivities, like most Bunts settled outside the district do.
“On Wednesday, he left home on his routine walk. Somebody called us and told
this had happened,” said Sandeep, admitting that his brother had made a lot of
enemies in the course of his crusade against land scams. Like Satish, his
sister Shobha and Sandeep are unmarried, barring elder brother Santosh, an
engineer in the US. Sandeep said it was difficult to say who was behind it as
there were 20-30 cases involving government land usurped by land sharks in
connivance with officials.
Sacrifice won’t go in vain: kin
Stanley G Pinto | TNN
Mangalore: Sandeep Shetty is determined not to take his brother’s death lying
down. “I am going to continue the battle he waged against corruption and goons.
I don’t know how far I’ll succeed, but his sacrifice should not be in vain,”
said Sandeep. The younger brother of Satish Shetty also smells foul play. “He
was supposed to get police protection today (Thursday). This incident, to
happen a day before he got protection, shows something is very wrong,” said
Sandeep to TOI, pointing out that Satish had sought police protection 10 days
back.
All members of the family, barring elder brother Santosh, live in Talegoan. “We
used to talk daily about what Satish’s fight will lead to. We never thought it
would lead to this (murder), he said still shaken from his brother’s death.
“I was totally broken yesterday. Today I am starting to realize what my brother
stood for. He tried to push the wheel (against corruption etc). My job will be
to get it forward. Only when society believes it cannot be threatened by money
and muscle power, will democracy survive,” he said emotionally.
Sandeep says the assailants wanted to send a clear message to people who wanted
to follow his path. He did not have many followers as he was incorruptible,
noted Sandeep, who is a general manager in a company
“He died on the battle front, the only difference being that the enemy was not
an external aggressor,” said Sandeep.
