New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday mandated a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the alleged torture of a woman in police custody following her arrest during protests against the rape and murder of a doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata.
A bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan altered a Calcutta High Court order that had initially directed a CBI probe. Instead, the Supreme Court instructed that senior IPS officers from the state be entrusted with the investigation. The SIT, composed of officers nominated by the state, is required to submit weekly progress reports to the High Court.
Chief Justice of the Calcutta High Court was directed to form a special bench to oversee the SIT’s submissions and any further investigative actions. This decision follows the Supreme Court’s stay on the High Court’s October 8 order for a CBI investigation, responding to an appeal by the West Bengal government. The state contended that the High Court had wrongly mandated a CBI probe, asserting that the state police were capable of conducting the investigation.
Previously, on November 6, a division bench of the High Court upheld a single-judge order for a CBI probe into the allegations. The division bench maintained that the single judge’s decision for an independent investigation was appropriate and did not warrant interference.
The case originated when two women, Rebeka Khatun Molla and Rama Das, filed petitions alleging physical torture while in police custody. They were arrested on September 7 and held at Falta Police Station in the Diamond Harbour district until their judicial remand the following day. A jail doctor reported signs of hematoma on Das’s legs, although an examining doctor at Diamond Harbour Medical College and Hospital found no external injuries.
The High Court noted discrepancies between the medical reports, concluding that the trauma likely occurred on September 7 in police custody. These inconsistencies prompted the court to call for an investigation by an independent agency to ensure impartiality and thoroughness.
