West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee on Thursday ordered a judicial probe into the mysterious death of a Muslim youth, who was allegedly threatened by two senior police officials for marrying a Hindu girl.
Justice (Retd) Alok Chakraborty of Calcutta High Court will conduct the inquiry into the death of Rizwan-ur-Rehman, whose body was found on rail tracks beside the Dum Dum GRP barracks, far from his home in Park Circus, on September 21.
"There is involvement of money power and communal power in the case, which will have to be properly inquired into," Bhattacharjee, who had ordered a CID probe four days ago, said.
The latest step comes in the wake of allegations from his own party, the Communist Party of India-Marxist and opposition parties against the involvement of senior police officers.
Rizwan had married Priyanka, daughter of an industrialist, Ashok Todi, on August 18 against the wishes of the family.
Kolkata police commissioner, Prasun Mukherjee, had admitted on September 23 that the couple were summoned to the Lalbazar police headquarters on September 1, 4 and 8, when two officers of the rank of deputy commissioner, had tried to persuade Priyanka to return to her parents.
Mukherjee had defended the action of the police officials saying: "We are professionals and we work in this way."
Bhattacharjee said Rizwan's death had stirred the society and that he had received a number of allegations from different quarters into the unnatural death.
The CID inquiry will run concurrently with the judicial inquiry. The terms of references of the judicial inquiry will be known shortly, he said while stating that there were many dimensions in the case.
To a question, Bhattacharjee, who also holds the Home (Police) portfolio, said: "We are not trying to shield any police officer and will not spare anyone if found involved."
Asked about the role of the police commissioner, the chief minister said: "Everything will be mentioned in the terms of reference which will be known shortly."
To another query on whether it was possible to retain any police official against whom charges are levelled, he said, "Of course, it is possible. Only a judicial inquiry can order them to appear before it in the interest of investigations."
He was apparently referring to the comments of Transport Minister and CPI-M leader Subhas Chakraborty, who earlier in the day said, "The question is of transparency. If the CID inquiry is on, why are those against whom charges have been levelled by Rizwan's family still holding positions in the police?"
The minister said he was in agreement with Land Reforms Minister Abdur Rezzak Mollah, who had suggested raising funds to help Rizwan's family fight the case against police.
Park Circus area, where Rizwan lived, had witnessed mob violence on September 22, with a police jeep being torched after the discovery of his body.
Rizwan's family moves court
Rizwan's family has moved the Calcutta High Court seeking a CBI enquiry into his death claiming they had no faith in the state machinery.
Keshwar Jahan, his mother, and brother Ruqbanur moved a writ petition before Justice Soumitra Pal seeking a CBI probe.
Pal directed Jahan's lawyer Kalyan Banerjee to serve notice to all parties, including Kolkata Police Commissioner Prasun Mukherjee, Deputy Commissioner (Headquarter) Gyanwant Singh and Deputy Commissioner (Detective Department) Ajoy Kumar, apart from the girl's industrialist father Ashok Todi, owner of a leading hosiery brand.
The matter is likely to come up for hearing soon. But the petitioners claimed that since police officers of the state were in league with Todi and had acted beyond the statutory provisions of law, they felt that fair inquiry will not be conducted by any agency of the state police
