JOIN US The Uttar Pradesh (UP) government on Monday recommended a CBI probe into the mysterious death of Karnataka cadre IAS officer Anurag Tewari.
The officer was found dead near the Meerabai Guest House in Lucknow on Wednesday. “The government has decided to recommended a CBI probe in the matter,” said Principal Secretary (Home) Arvind Kumar. The decision to hand over the case to the premier investigating agency came a few hours after Tewari’s family met Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and sought a CBI probe.
Earlier in the day, the Lucknow Police registered a murder case after Tewari’s elder brother Mayank lodged a complaint. The FIR states that Tewari had told Mayank that he was working on some file, which could unearth a big scam and expose many officials in Karnataka.
“My brother was being pressurised to sign some papers... He had declined to sign them...that is why some people were exerting pressure on him,” Mayank stated in the FIR. He also said that Anurag was an “honest” officer and was “transferred seven to eight times in his 10-year career”.
Interestingly, Mayank has claimed that Anurag was a “late riser” and not someone who goes for a morning walk. Initially, the police suggested that Tewari might have been knocked down by a speeding vehicle while he was out for a walk.
A source said a special team of the state police would leave for Bengaluru shortly to gather detailed information and also ascertain the veracity of the allegations levelled by Tewari’s family.
Superiors may be quizzed
“Tewari’s superiors may be quizzed,” said a senior officer in the UP government.
The postmortem report has failed to ascertain the cause of death. “Asphyxia, cause? Hence, viscera and blood preserved for chemical analysis and heart preserved for histopathological examination,” the report concluded.