Kotkhai: HC orders CBI Director to file affidavit

Legal Correspondent

Shimla, April 25

The High Court on Wednesday told the CBI Director to file his personal affidavit on the status reports filed by the agency and the investigations conducted by it into the rape and murder of a girl from Kotkhai.

A Division Bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Sanjay Karol and Justice Sandeep Sharma passed this order after perusing the tenth status report filed by the CBI in this case. During the course of hearing, the counsel for the CBI handed over its status report in a sealed cover. Before opening it, the court expressed displeasure on the leakage of contents of the report to the media.

On this, the counsel for the CBI informed the court that officials of the agency had not disclosed it and persuaded the court that there were certain facts which were important and no one was aware about these. After this, the court opened the report and after perusing it, the court ordered the Director to file his personal affidavit.

However, the counsel requested the court that the requirement of personal affidavit of the Director was not necessary as the status report was already approved by him. But the court declined his request and listed the matter for hearing on May 8.

During the course of hearing, the counsel informed the court that the agency had arrested one person and the CBI court had given him 14-day judicial remand till May 7.

On July 19, the court had directed the CBI to constitute a three-member SIT, headed by an SP, to investigate the case of rape and murder of a 16-year-old girl from Kotkhai. The court had also entrusted the investigation of custodial death of an accused in the case with the CBI. It was on July 12, 2017, that the High Court took suo motu cognizance of the matter on the news reports published in the media.

It was on July 4, 2017, that a minor girl went missing while returning home from school. It was two days later on July 6 that her body was found in the Halaila forests. It was after public outburst and anger spilling on to roads that the case was handed over to the CBI.