Shamnad Basheer may have died of suffocation: Police
Bengaluru, Aug 9: A day after legal scholar Shamnad Basheer was found dead in his car in Karnataka, police on Friday said he may have died due to suffocation, discounting the possibility of any foul play.
Basheer, an alumnus of the National Law School of India University here and the Oxford University, was found dead by police in his car in an open area, a short distance from the road, on the outskirts of the district headquarters town of Chikkamagaluru on Thursday.
"He had parked and locked his car from inside and the cause of death is either suffocation or carbon monoxide poisoning because he must have switched on his heater, because after some time it led to short-circuit," Chikkamagaluru Superintendent of Police Harish Pandey told PTI.
The police are waiting for the autopsy report to determine the cause of the death of the 43-year-old, the founder of Increased Diversity by Increasing Access to Legal Education, an NGO serving to make legal education accessible to underprivileged children.
He was also a specialist in Intellectual Property law.
Basheer, a recipient of the Infosys Science Foundation prize and also known for his contributions in reforms in and spreading of legal education, was reportedly missing for the past three to four days.
Police had launched a vigorous search on Thursday after his family members lodged a missing complaint.
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Bulk diesel price hike rolled back for Gujarat fishermen: Minister
Gandhinagar (PTI): The latest hike in bulk diesel prices has been withdrawn for Gujarat’s fishermen after the state took up the matter with the Centre, Fisheries Minister Jitu Vaghani said.
The price of premium or higher-grade petrol was increased on Friday by Rs 2 per litre, while the rate of bulk diesel sold to industrial users was hiked by Rs 22.43 a litre, reflecting the spike in global oil prices amid the West Asia conflict.
Vaghani on Saturday said the Gujarat government had urged the Centre to offer relief to the fisheries sector by considering a “special exception” and withdrawing the increase of Rs 22.43 per litre in the price of bulk diesel used in fishermen’s boats.
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The state urged that fishermen be considered on par with retail customers, he said.
“Under the guidance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Centre has accepted this reasonable representation of the fishermen of Gujarat. The Centre has instructed Bharat Petroleum to withdraw the increase of Rs 22.43 in the price of diesel used in fishermen’s boats, an official release said.
“So, the fishermen of the state will now receive diesel at the previously decided concessional rate,” it added.
The Gujarat government had signed a pact with the public sector undertaking Bharat Petroleum to ensure diesel for fishermen at a discounted price. However, the PSU recently increased the diesel price for fishermen by Rs 22.43 per litre.
“A representation was made to Vaghani, MLAs, local leaders and various fisheries organisations. Considering the seriousness of the matter, Vaghani, under the guidance of the chief minister, made a representation to the Centre to intervene in the matter,” the release said.
