Student leader death: Cal HC asks petitioner to file affidavit objecting to SIT probe findings

The Calcutta High Court on Monday directed the father of deceased student leader Anis Khan to file an affidavit as an objection to a report submitted by the West Bengal government after his lawyer took exception to the findings of the probe.

Petitioner Salem Khan's lawyer Bikash Bhattacharya submitted that the report can at best be termed as an inquiry report and not that of an investigation, claiming that it did not contain relevant details.

Bhattacharya also objected to the findings of the West Bengal government-appointed special investigation team (SIT), submitting that it was ridiculous to suggest that the death of Anis Khan was non-homicidal as has been stated in the report.

Justice Rajasekhar Mantha told Bhattacharya that a formal exception to the report is filed by the petitioner in the form of an affidavit within one week.

The court adjourned the hearing in the matter till May 12.

Khan had moved the high court seeking an order for an investigation into the death of his son by an impartial agency that is not connected with the West Bengal police.

Justice Mantha had on March 14 directed an SIT to complete its probe by April 18 into the death of the student leader, whose father alleged that he was murdered by men wearing khaki and civic volunteer uniforms.

Bhattacharya had claimed before the court that Anis was brutally assaulted by four persons, of whom one was in police uniform and the other three in civic volunteer dress, and pushed off the third floor of his home at Amta in Howrah district on the night of February 19.

The state government, on April 19, submitted an 82-page probe progress report to the court, by its directions, indicating the steps taken for investigating the case.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)