NEW DELHI: Supreme Court Monday stayed a Madras HC order transferring to CBI the investigations into repeated sexual assault of a 10-year-old girl on Oct 29, and decided to set up a special investigation team (SIT) to probe the incident while expressing shock over the manner in which state police treated the minor.
Appearing for DMK govt in Tamil Nadu, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi told a bench of Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan that Chennai Police had acted promptly and registered FIRs prior to arresting the accused. However, when the bench said it would constitute an SIT to probe the incident instead of transferring the probe to CBI, the state govt readily agreed.
The bench said, prima facie there appears to be mishandling of the case by police, which is likely because of their insensitivity to the survivor. “We aren’t happy with the investigations,” SC said, and asked DMK govt to furnish the names of seven direct recruit IPS officers, who are natives of other states but have opted for TN cadre. “Of the panel of IPS officers, at least three should be women,” it said.
“We would like to constitute an SIT to investigate the incident,” the bench said and asked the state to furnish the names of the IPS officers by Nov 18, the next date of hearing. It also said that the state would bear the expenses of litigation and fees of the advocate engaged by the mother of the sexually assaulted minor.
Hours later, senior advocate Kapil Sibal requested the bench to pass similar orders in a case from Bengal where HC had ordered CBI probe into the alleged physical torture of two women, who were arrested for instigating an accused to give threats of rape against the minor child of an MP.
The bench agreed and stayed Calcutta HC’s orders for CBI probe into the incident but stayed the ongoing probes by Bengal Police into the incident. Following the approach adopted in the TN incident, the bench asked Trinamool govt to furnish a panel of seven IPS officers of WB cadre, who are not inhabitants of the state, of which at least five should be women by Nov 18.
On Oct 1, HC ordered CBI probe into the rape case saying though the minor was repeatedly raped, cops harassed the parents & arrested the prime suspect only after 12 days.
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