The Congress Party on Sunday called for an impartial investigation into the Vyapam scam and asked whether the journalist who died under mysterious circumstances was another victim of this case.
Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said that Akshay Singh was a young, adventurous and well-informed journalist.
"His tragic death has not only shaken India Today-Aaj Tak group, but the entire media fraternity. We share our heartfelt condolences to his family," Surjewala told ANI here.
"This incident raises questions regarding the woman, who was reported to have been raped and later killed, on whom Akshay was conducting an investigation related to the Vyapam scam,. How deep did Akshay go into the case? Was he able to find out the missing links of the case? Why did this journalist die in mysterious circumstances? Is Akshay another victim of the Vyapam scam?" he asked.
Surjewala alleged that the Madhya Pradesh Government has not been able to respond to the matter.
"The Madhya Pradesh police tried to get rid of the whole incident, even the Special Task Force (STF) could not investigate the matter. Still the state government wants the investigation to be conducted by the STF," said Surjewala.
"This case needs a proper impartial investigation, but not through the Madhya Pradesh Police. The Madhya Pradesh Government should avoid backing out from the entire matter," he added.
Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan earlier said that he is writing a letter to the SIT to probe the journalist's death.
Talking to the media in Bhopal, Chouhan said the state government has full sympathy with the family of deceased scribe.
Akshay Singh, a journalist working for a leading Delhi-based news channel, on Saturday suddenly took ill and died after having interviewed parents of a girl who had been found dead near railway tracks, after her name figured in the Vyapam scam.
The incident took place in Meghnagar near Jhabua town.
The journalist was rushed to the civil hospital and later to a private hospital, but doctors failed to revive him. From there he was taken to another hospital in nearby Dahod in Gujarat, where he was declared brought dead.
