A Calcutta High Court Bench criticised the CBI’s handling of the RG Kar rape and murder investigation, questioning its limited probe and asking, “Who had tied the hands of the CBI?”, while stressing the court’s commitment to ensuring justice.
A division bench of the Calcutta High Court, which on May 21 ordered a new probe into the RG Kar rape and murder case by a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), on Thursday criticised the central agency for carrying out what it described as a lackadaisical probe so far.
As directed by Justice Shampa Sarkar and Justice Tirthankar Ghosh, the CBI filed a progress report in court on Thursday. After reviewing it, the two judges raised serious concerns about the investigation.
Justice Ghosh said the progress did not match the May 21 order requiring a fresh probe by a three-member SIT. He also suggested that the court might consider removing the case from the CBI later.
Justice Sarkar questioned several aspects of the probe. She noted that the seminar room inside the hospital premises claimed by many to be the actual crime scene had been destroyed. She asked why the CBI’s investigation appeared limited to the larger conspiracy referenced in its progress report.
She further questioned who had tied the hands of the CBI, pointing out that the court had been keen on ensuring justice.
CBI counsel told the court that there may have been some misunderstanding of the May 21 order, adding that investigation is on and every aspect in the matter will be probed.
In the meantime, the victim’s family urged the court that if the CBI was unable to identify the key culprits, the investigation should be transferred to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the West Bengal Police.
The victim’s body, a junior doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital, was found inside the seminar room on August 9, 2024. Initially, a Kolkata Police SIT investigated the case and arrested Sanjay Roy, a civic volunteer linked with the city police.
Later, the CBI took over after a High Court directive, named Roy as the sole accused, and he was convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment. The CBI then challenged the trial court’s decision, seeking the death penalty.
Not satisfied with the probe, the victim’s family approached the High Court again, alleging that the CBI had effectively endorsed the findings of the Kolkata Police. The matter was first heard by a division bench of Justices Rajasekhar Mantha and Rai Chattopadhyay, who recused themselves.
The case was then assigned to Justices Sarkar and Ghosh.