AAP MP Writes To External Minister On Indian Student's Death At US, Asks To Take Acton (Photo on X Jaya Surya Goud @N_JSurya)
As reports of the absence of charges against the US police officer who ran over Indian student causing her death came, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal wrote to the External Affair Minister S Jaishankar requesting him to take up the matter with authorities in the US.
The Seattle police officer Kevin Dave hit the 23-year-old Jaahnavi Kandula on January 23 with police vehicle while she was crossing the street. The police officer was driving at around 120 kilometres per hour as he was responding to a drug overdose call.
The King County Prosecuting Attorney released a statement on Wednesday, stating that the office will not take trial against the police officer and hence no criminal charge against him.
The AAP MP in her letter to the external affairs minister stated that the decision of the King County prosecuting office to not pursue a criminal case against the police officer who caused an Indian student”s death has shaken the Indian community, besides the family of the deceased.
The letter further noted that given the circumstances surrounding the incident, the prosecutors’ claims “do little to assuage the concerns regarding accountability and justice.”
Pointing out the alleged negligence and recklessness in the incident, the letter accused the prosecutors of failing to gather adequate evidence to hold the police officer accountable. The letter said that the proceedings have brought a sense of dismay among the family of the diseased and the Indian diaspora in the US. The AAP leader, sharing the letter then appealed the External Affairs Minister take swift action to address the issue.
A 23-year-old Indian student was killed after allegedly being hit by a speeding police vehicle in the US state of Washington in January last year.
The recent decision by the King County prosecutor”s office not to pursue criminal charges against the Seattle police officer… pic.twitter.com/3J9sjPNbkd
— Swati Maliwal (@SwatiJaiHind) February 23, 2024
Talking about the case, the prosecuting Attorney Leesa Manion on Wednesday said, “It is the responsibility of the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office to review all available evidence relating to the case involving Seattle Police Officer Kevin Dave and the January 2023 collision death of Jaahnavi Kandula. After staffing this case with senior deputy prosecuting attorneys and office leadership, I have determined that we lack sufficient evidence under Washington State law to prove a criminal case beyond a reasonable doubt.”
Notably, bodycam footage released by the Seattle Police Department showed Officer Daniel Auderer laughing about the incident while dismissing that the police officer Dave might be wrong. However, the laughing of the officer the crash sparked controversy, resulting in shifting Auderer into a non-operational position, as per a report by Hindustan Times.
