The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday refused to hand over the murder case of ‘student leader’ Anish Khan to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for investigation. The court has further ordered the state-formed SIT to file a charge sheet and conduct further probe into the case if required, reports Live Law.
BREAKING: Calcutta HC refuses to transfer probe into death of student activist Anis Khan to CBI, State constituted SIT ordered to file chargesheet or conduct further investigation if required.#CalcuttaHighCourt #AnisKhan pic.twitter.com/6k402Lnc71
— Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) June 21, 2022
Justice Rajasekhar Mantha of the Calcutta High Court orally observed that he has perused all the relevant records and that he is of the ‘clear view’ that there is no need for the transfer of investigation to the CBI. Justice Mantha also observed that all observations made on the State constituted SIT were only for the limited purpose of determining whether the probe should be handed over to CBI or not.
Islamist organisation member Anish Khan died under mysterious circumstances
Anish Khan, a member of the Islamist outfit ‘Indian Secular Front (ISF)’, was found dead on the night of February 18, 2022, under mysterious circumstances.
The family of Khan had alleged that he was killed by 4 uniformed police officers and civic volunteers. He has allegedly pushed off the 3rd floor of his own house in Amta in the Howrah district of West Bengal.
“It was around 12:30 am that four persons came to our house and identified themselves as policemen from the Amta police station. One of them stood with me on the ground floor. He was carrying a firearm. The other three took my son upstairs. Moments later, I heard a huge thud and found that my son was lying in a pool of blood. As I raised the alarm, all the four persons fled,” Salem Khan, Anish Khan’s father has then said.
Khan’s family members had demanded a CBI investigation into his death. Claiming that the killing of Anish Khan was a “premeditated murder”, senior counsel Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharya, appearing on behalf of the deceased’s father, had prayed before the court that an independent investigation is ordered into it.
State constituted SIT calls Khan’s murder ‘death by accident’, family objects
The state government, meanwhile, had formed the SIT headed by Additional director general (CID) Gyanwant Singh to probe the case. In April 2022, the West Bengal government-appointed special investigation team (SIT) submitted a progress report on its investigation into the alleged murder of Anish Khan to the Calcutta High Court.
The family had objected to the report submitted by the SIT, saying that it does not disclose how and with whose permission the raid took place at Anish Khan’s home at Amta in West Bengal’s Howrah district on the night of February 18. Bhattacharya, the deceased’s family advocate, had further objected and called the findings of the SIT report ‘ridiculous’ for suggesting that the death of Anis Khan was non-homicidal.
Advocate General S.N Mookherjee appearing on behalf of the state had, however, argued before the court that Khan’s death was accidental and not homicidal. It had cited the deceased’s autopsy report to substantiate his claims.
Left-wing supporters protest the murder of Anish Khan, govt ordered a police crackdown
It may be recalled that on February 22, many Islamic student organisations had carried out protests against the alleged murder of Anish Khan. The West Bengal police had then carried out a lathi charge against these members of left-wing student organisations. The State unit of AISA claimed that over 100s students were arrested by the West Bengal police on the behest of the Trinamool Congress government.
