Birbhum Massacre Accused Custodial Death: Calcutta HC Restrains CID From Taking Coercive Action Against CBI Officers

In an important development, the Calcutta High Court on Wednesday ordered West Bengal Police's Criminal Investigation Department (CID) not to take any coercive action against officials of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with the custodial death of an accused in the Birbhum massacre case. 

On December 12, Lalan Sheikh, a prime accused in the Birbhum massacre case, was found dead in CBI custody in the State's Birbhum district. The CID had subsequently registered an FIR against seven officials of the CBI.

Violence broke out in Birbhum district of West Bengal back in March in which 10 persons were killed allegedly in retaliation to the murder of local All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Bhadu Sheikh. Thereafter, Calcutta High Court had transferred the investigation into the case from the State constituted Special Investigating Team (SIT) to the CBI. 

Hours after the CID took over the investigation of Sheikh's custodial death, the CBI moved the High Court on Wednesday seeking a stay on the CID investigation in the matter. An FIR had been lodged against seven senior CBI officials, including its deputy inspector general (DIG) under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code. 

While Justice Jay Sengupta refused to impose a stay on the CID probe, he underscored that all steps taken during the investigation must be meticulously videographed. 

"For the present, the CID shall continue to investigate the case until further orders.  All the steps taken during investigation have to be videographed, especially the recording of statements of witnesses and the recovery of articles, if any", the Court ordered. 

The Court further directed that no coercive steps must be taken against the CBI officials until further orders and that no final report must be filed by the CID without the lead of the Court. 

Justice Sengupta also averred in the order that the prayer of the CBI for a second post-mortem of the deceased is kept open. The wife of the deceased was also ordered to be impleaded as a party in the present proceedings. Accordingly, the matter was listed for further hearing on December 21. 

Pertinently, the Court also observed that it is 'uncanny' to see that high ranking CBI officials including the DIG have been named as accused persons in the FIR and thus remarked, 

"It is uncanny indeed to see the names of the investigating officers of other high profile cases being taken as names of accused in the present case. Even high ranking officers of the CBI like a DIG have been named there, in a rather far-fetched manner."

During the hearing, senior advocate D.P Singh appearing on behalf of the CBI pointed out that two officers of the agency who are investigating a cattle smuggling case and are not related to the probe into the Birbhum massacre case, have been named in the FIR.

The Court also took into consideration the submission on behalf of the CBI that there have been prior instances in such cases wherein external pressure has been levelled upon the investigating officers of the CBI to deter them from unearthing truth.

Case Title: Central Bureau of Investigation v. The State of West Bengal

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