CID’s foul play in Rizwanur death case

Oct 17: Describing the CID probe as faulty the Calcutta High Court on Tuesday directed CBI to conduct further investigation on the death of Rizwanur Rehman murder case. This is also a blow to the government of West Bengal, which had first ordered for a CID probe and then a judicial probe.

After a huge public response with protest in different places of the country on the involvement of Calcutta police, it was important the court to entrust the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation. The court has also given a time of two months to complete and submit its investigation report.

Justice Soumitra Pal, after studying the entire CID probe report termed it as faulty and is not up to the mark. The court observed that the inquiry conducted by the State’s Criminal Investigation Department is unlawful. The court also questioned the summon of 56 people by CID under section 175 of CrPC which was illegal.

The court termed the CID inquiry as illicit as the agency was conducting inquiry after state government order but without registering a case.

The most striking factor in CID probe is that the investigation phrases it as a suicide case. Hence, the family of Rizwanur demanded a CBI inquiry citing the circumstances that leads to Rizwanur’s death. According to them it is because of Rizwanur’s marriage with Priyanka Todi, daughter of a high profile business man that he was murdered.

It is to mention here that Rizwanur, a Muslim youth who married Priyanka was found dead on a railway track on Sep 21. Rizwanur had married Priyanka under the Special Marriage Act on Aug 18 and began living together at his residence from August 21.

It was alleged that after getting pressure from Priyanka’s father Ashok Todi, the Kolkata police had summoned the couple thrice before convincing Rizwanur to send Priyanka to her father’s home with a written assurance. But after a couple of days police found Rizwanur’s body on Sep 21.

Police Commissioner Prasun Mukherjee after initial investigation mentioned it in a press conference that it was a suicidal case. This raised doubt about the involvement of police in the entire case and subsequently the issue generated a lot of debate and discussion that eventually made the state government to take this case seriously and ordered judicial probe after a CID investigation.

As the couple belongs to different religions it was also a case that tends to address communal aspects. Hence the government directed for a judicial probe along with CID investigation as CID only look into the criminal aspects of the case and in contrast a judicial probe scrutinise all including communal or cultural parts of the case.

Meanwhile, the High Court had only questioned CID probe and directed for a CBI probe but had not mentioned anything about the judicial probe. But the court’s observation on a CID probe really raises question how a state powered investigation agency conducted the probe in an unlawful manner.