Ex-navy officer ends fast in Rajasthan

Jaipur, May 8 (IANS) An ex-Indian Navy officer from Rajasthan who has been fasting here for the last 10 days demanding a CBI probe into the murder of his father ended his agitation Tuesday, his family said.

Yashwant Sharma, 52, who took voluntarily retirement as a commander in 2007 after 23 years of service, started his fast April 29 to seek a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe in the murder.

"Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot has assured me of a fair probe. He has given us the choice to appoint any police officer from Rajasthan Police for investigation into the murder of my father," Sharma told IANS.

Sharma was admitted to the Sawai Man Singh Hospital for medical examination after he ended the fast.

"My 77-year-old father, Anandswaroop Sharma, had gone missing from our house in Jawarhar Nagar Jan 21. His body with his throat slit was found a week later in an abandoned house in Pratap Nagar, almost 15 km away," he said.

He alleged his father was murdered at the behest of the property mafia.

"The police arrested two men who had a property dispute with my father. However, some other influential people involved in the killing are being shielded by police," he said.

Sharma also questioned the police investigation into the case so far. "The forensic report, the call detail records and other evidence have been ignored by police," he alleged.