CJ Roy death: Decision on judicial inquiry lies with Finance Minister Sitharaman, says G Parameshwara

Home Minister G Parameshwara on Tuesday said that the decision on whether a judicial inquiry will be set up to probe CJ Roy’s death lies with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

“I know that a letter has been written (by Kerala CM) to the finance minister, but I do not know the contents. Let us wait on what she decides. The Income Tax (IT) Department falls under the finance minister. We have set up a special investigation team (SIT), which has begun the probe. Based on their report, we will decide on the next course of action,” Parameshwara said.

“The SIT will record statements of the family members and others as needed. Before the investigation concludes, we can’t say the reason,” he added.

Continuing its investigation, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) is also examining the medical history of Roy to understand whether he had a history of mental illness. Reportedly, Roy had visited a psychiatrist in Jayanagar, a day before his death on January 30.

Sources said that Roy's claim to be debt-free may have led the IT department to probe him to find out the sources of his funds. “Investigations have accessed his call detail records and other technical records. A detailed scouring is underway to find out who Roy spoke with immediately before his death and who were frequent callers,” sources said.