Jhalda murder: HC rejects state plea against CBI probe order

Kolkata: Calcutta High Court on Monday turned down the

Bengal

government’s plea against the CBI probe order in the

Tapan Kandu

murder case.Tapan — who was elected a Congress councillor in Purulia’s Jhalda municipality — was gunned down on March 13, prompting his wife Purnima, also a councillor, to move the HC for a CBI probe.A part of Purnima’s allegations was against the Jhalda police, including its then officer-in-charge. The HC single bench had ordered a CBI probe. The state challenged this order before a division bench, arguing that the HC had erred in blaming the Jhalda OC and attributing motive at an investigation stage.A division bench of Chief Justice Prakash Shrivastava and Justice

Rajarshi Bharadwaj

, in their 14-page order on Monday, said: “We do not find any error in the order of the learned Single Judge and no case of interference is made out.”It also said that the single-bench “has not passed the order in a routine manner or merely on the basis of allegations, but had called for the report and also examined the case diary and noted the circumstances requiring investigation by an independent agency”.The CBI told the court that it had taken over the investigations and had made “substantial progress”.Purnima said: “I am relieved that the state plea has been turned down by the division bench.”Purulia Congress president Nepal Mahato said: “We are prepared for a long battle. If the state moves against this in the apex court, we will challenge it too.”