CBI probe ordered into Birbhum killings case

It has sought the report by April 7

The Calcutta High Court on Friday directed the state government to hand over the investigation of the brutal incident of Birbhum to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). In Bogtui village, in the Birbhum district of West Bengal, eight people were killed when 10 houses were allegedly put on fire in retaliation, following the killing of a Trinamool upa-pradhan on Monday evening.

A division bench of Chief Justice Prakash Shrivastava and Justice Rajarshi Bharadwaj observed that “facts and circumstances of the case demand that in the interest of justice and to instill confidence in the society and to have fair investigation to dig out the truth, it is necessary to hand over the investigation to the CBI”. Earlier, the court had registered a suo moto petition, and five public interest litigations had been filed that made serious allegations.

Also Read — Birbhum killings: West Bengal's culture of political violence brims over

While giving its direction, the court took cognisance of the apprehensions expressed, about the role of the special investigation team (SIT) formed by the state, and about the local police in the probe.

The court directed the state authorities to extend full cooperation to CBI, and also directed that the state police authorities or the SIT will not investigate the matter further, once the CBI takes over. The Court also instructed that besides case papers, the CBI will also be handed over “accused and suspects who were arrested in the matter and in custody”.

On Thursday, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had visited the affected village and offered financial assistance to the aggrieved families. She had also asked police to take strong and exemplary measures against the guilty.

Political opponents of the Trinamool Congress - the BJP, the Left and the Congress Party - have been protesting against the incident. Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar has also expressed his views publicly on the violence. Several political delegations have visited the region.

BJP national vice president Dilip Ghosh stated that the state government had formed SITs in the past to investigate cases but those drew a blank. Trinamool spokesperson Kunal Ghosh said that the party will fully cooperate with the investigation. He, however, added that if attempts are made to cover up any conspiracy, or if revengeful politics is attempted out of the context of the event’s investigation, then the party will protest and take to mass agitation.

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