Interim report was not made public: Somashekara Commission

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangalore, Feb 9: Justice B K Somashekara Commission has sent a clarificatory note to the press in the wake of misgivings, misinterpretations, public reactions, and debates regarding the procedure followed by it in submitting the interim report to the state government as well as the contents of the highlights of the interim report, which were released during the submission of the report. 

 

The Commission declares that it has neither violated any protocol or proprieties in its procedure of submitting the interim report to the state government nor committed any breach of privileges of the legislature. Since each commission regulates its own procedure for different purposes and results, the practices following by other commissions are neither precedents nor binding on any other commission. The Commission has acted within its own powers under the provisions of the Commission of Inquiries Act 1952 and its regulations framed under section 8 of this Act.  The practices of several other commissions are neither laws nor regulations to be followed by other commissions.  

Seeking to clear up the mistaken impression that the report was not given in a sealed cover to the government, the Commission’s clarificatory note stressed that the interim report was in fact submitted in a sealed cover to the government in the presence of dignitaries, members of the public, and officers of the Honorable Commission during a formal function held in the DC’s office Mangalore. The contents of the main report were kept secret.  

Since the chief secretary was unable to receive the report personally because he had to attend a conference in Delhi, Home Secretary Abhijit Dasgupta received the reports addressed to both the chief minister as well as the home minister. Sri Siddalingesh, the law secretary, received the sealed cover on behalf of the law minister. The chief secretary, home secretary, and law secretary were intimated well in advance to receive the reports and the Commission is sure that the three secretaries were officially deputed to receive the report on the behalf of the government.  

The Commission stressed that it has not revealed the contents of the report to anybody and clarified that only the highlights of the report, which had already been circulating in the public domain, as well as general recommendations were disclosed to those who attended the function. The highlights were not disclosed specially for the benefit of the press and media persons, who had attended the programme in their professional capacity.  

The Commission clarified that it has neither held any press conference nor spoken to Doordarshan. The Commission simply read out the contents of the highlights of the interim report to everybody who was present when it was being submitted. The Commission believes that the secretaries of the government have apprised the government of what really happened during the submission of the report.  

The Commission said that it has not made any statements holding any organization or the district administration responsible for the church attacks because the enquiry has not yet drawn to a close for it to reach any such conclusion.  

The Commission’s clarificatory note concluded by stressing that it only wishes to place facts before the public and not enter into any controversies or issues with any view given by anybody regarding the issue.