Sacked Assam Minister sent to CBI custody

The CBI on Wednesday successfully went on tightening the noose around the sacked Assam Education Minister Ripun Bora and an associate when a city court here on Wednesday sent both to a three-day CBI remand on the charge of allegedly offering bribe of Rs 17 lakh to a CBI officer to affect the nature of the investigation into a murder case.

Additional Sessions Judge R K Yadav accepting the CBI plea sent the accused Ripun Bora to its custody by saying, 'Since all the circumstantial evidence is to be collected from Guwahati, where he was an influential leader, I am of the opinion that their police custody is justified.'

"The accusations, justifying their arrest, are well founded. Conspiracy is hatched in darkness and that is to be probed during the thorough interrogation. Any missing link may impede the investigation," the court observed.

The CBI said that Bora had been held under the Prevention of Corruption Act.

The central investigating agency, CBI had arrested Ripun Bora and a co-accused Ramesh K Maheswari Tuesday from Sundar Nagar for allegedly offering bribe to one of agency's officer probing the murder of a student's union leader, Toppo. The Minister along with his associate had come to Delhi a day before and was resided at an inn in Sunder Nagar. Next day he invited Deputy Superintendent of Police A B Gupta, who was investigating the case and tried to bribe him. Bora along with Maheshwari met his ill-fate and was caught red handed by the CBI officials. His another associate Mukul Pathak, a journalist by profession was also arrested from the Guwahati airport.

Danniel Toppo was murdered on September 27, 2000. During the 1996 Assembly polls in Assam, he was the district President of the All Assam Tea Tribe Students' Union and contested the Gohpur seat as an independent candidate against the Bora.

A year later his murder, the CBI was handed over the case after the local police remained fail to fetch any lead into the investigation.

Meanwhile, under constant fire from Oppositions accusing the Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi for protecting the accused, the CM soon after minister's arrest deposed him from the state cabinet last night.