NEW DELHI: Supreme Court on Monday set up a three-member special investigation team to probe, under the Calcutta HC’s supervision, allegations of custodial torture of two women who were arrested for participating in a protest against the R G Kar hospital rape-murder incident and allegedly threatening an MP’s minor daughter with rape.
On a petition by the West Bengal govt, challenging the transfer of investigation of the alleged custodial torture incident to the CBI, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan modified the HC’s order and constituted the SIT, comprising three IPS officers of the West Bengal cadre who hail from other states, and said routine entrustment of investigations to the CBI not only burdened the agency, but also had a demoralising impact on the state police force.
“Entrusting of investigations routinely to the CBI not only leads to unmanageable burden on the premier investigating agency, but also has a far reaching demoralising impact on the morale of the state police,” the bench said.
While one woman was arrested for making threats of rape to the minor daughter of the MP, the other was accused of clapping to and supporting the alleged threat speech.
The main accused was kept in custody for more than a month. On their petition, alleging custodial torture, a Calcutta HC single-judge bench had ordered the CBI probe into the incident, which was upheld by a division bench.
The SIT’s members are Akash Magharia, DIG Presidency Range, Howrah (Rural) SP Swati Bhangalia, and Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic, Howrah) Sujata Kumari Veenapani.
The bench asked the SIT to immediately take over the probe from the West Bengal Police, and directed the state police to hand over all case documents and investigation records to the SIT during the day. “SIT shall resume investigation without delay,” it ordered.
The Justice Kant-led bench requested the Calcutta HC’s Chief Justice to constitute a bench, before which the SIT would file a probe status report every week and seek necessary directions to carry forward the SC-entrusted investigations.
Appearing for the two women, senior advocate Narender Hooda said the HC was right in ordering the CBI probe as the head of the West Bengal Police as well as the state home minister had termed the incident as a fictitious allegation. “One of the women has been charged under the POCSO Act for clapping in support of the alleged assertion made by the other woman. This shows the mindset of the state police to harass anyone criticising the state govt’s handling of the RG Kar incident,” he said.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for the state, did not make a statement as he understood that the SC would not entrust the investigations into the case to the CBI.
