PANAJI
An adventurous protest swim across the Mandovi river on Saturday ended tragically as the body of one of the two activist-swimmers, Manuel Pereira of Sinquerim, who dived into the river at Betim, was fished out on Monday and police registered a case of 'unnatural death'.
Pereira and the organiser of the protest Sudeep Dalvi were the two activists who plunged into the river on Saturday evening but only the latter swam ashore on the Panaji side.
'Swim for Justice' as it was styled by Dalvi was held purportedly to protest against arrests of activists across India and timed on the completion of a year since his own arrest by police on charges of promoting hatred among communities and violating orders of a government officer during lockdown.
According to eye-witnesses from among some supporter-activists who were present at the site in Betim where the 'swim for justice' began, Dalvi was slated to swim the river alone but was joined by Pereira at the spur of the moment on Saturday evening.
Some live videos of the protest swim shot from the Betim ferry jetty at the start of the protest had been uploaded on social media platforms.
Panaji police inspector Sudesh Naik meanwhile said the body has been sent for post-mortem and investigations are on. Offences will be registered against the organiser if culpability is established in the investigation, he added.
Several activists and supporters witnessing the swimming adventure from ashore claimed that Pereira was lagging behind and apparently in distress.
The crew from one of the passing casino feeder boats even threw a lifebuoy in a bid to rescue him, the eyewitness claimed adding that it was presumed he had been pulled up safely to the boat.
Several netizens reacted critically to the shoddily organised protest event after the tragic incident and death of Pereira, questioning why a support system was not in place.
Pereira was part of the 'music warriors' group led by the late priest-turned-green activist Bismarque Dias, who had also died in mysterious circumstances by drowning in a tributary of the same Mandovi river in his St Estevam village over five years ago.
