Thaindian News

Lucknow, July 13 (IANS) A day before the Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court is to pronounce its judgement on the plea for a CBI probe into the death of a jailed doctor, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati announced her decision to hand over the investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation.

An official statement to that effect was issued by the state government Wednesday evening stating: “The entire case is being transferred to CBI today itself.”

“When the family of the deceased doctor is keen on having the investigation carried out by CBI, then why should my government have any objection to it,” said Mayawati in the statement.

“Ideally, Dr. Sachan’s family should have been convinced that in case Dr. Sachan was actually murdered, then there was no way that the guilty could have managed to go scot free; after all there are so many examples that could be cited to prove how firm and transparent we have been in dealing with crime and criminals and even the ruling party MLAs, MPs or ministers have not been spared if they were found guilty,” she claimed.

The chief minister said: “The state government had even gone to the extent of suggesting that the investigation be carried out under the direct supervision of the high court through the constitution of a Special Investigation Team.”

“However, apparently, Sachan’s family was not convinced, and still felt more satisfied with a CBI inquiry only, then let the case be investigated by that agency,” she added.

Expressing the hope that the CBI would do a fool-proof and fair job, the chief minister said: “I also hope that CBI would not only remain transparent in its investigation but also not allow the investigation to get influenced by any kind of politics.”

An accused in the murder of his own superior, Sachan was found dead in mysterious circumstances inside a toilet of the high-security Lucknow district jail on the night of June 22.

Jail authorities and the local police dismissed it as a case of suicide, amidst echoing demand by Sachan’s family for a CBI inquiry as they insisted that it was “cold-blooded murder”.

Vehemently opposed to a CBI probe, the state government ordered a judicial inquiry that was entrusted to Lucknow chief judicial magistrate Rajesh Upadhaya. The CJM submitted his report as a one-man judicial commission to the state government late Monday night confirming ‘homicide’ (murder) as the cause of Sachan’s death, while dismissing the police theory of suicide.

The 76-page exhaustive report completed by the CJM over a brief span of just 18 days, pointedly blames the jail authorities for the murder as Sachan was expected to spill the beans on the financial irregularities that would have put several high and mighty in the dock.

Meanwhile, a PIL was moved before the Lucknow bench of Allahabad High Court seeking a CBI probe. After hearing prolonged arguments from both sides, a division bench comprising Justice Pradeep Kant and Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi on Tuesday reserved its verdict and said it would deliver this July 14.

However, barely 15 hours before the verdict would have been pronounced, the chief minister hurriedly announced a CBI probe.