SC asks 5-year-old rape victim's mother to place on record orders passed by Odisha HC

A two-judge Supreme Court bench, headed by Justice AM Khanwilkar asked a 5-year-old rape victim's mother to place on record orders passed by Odisha High Court. The petitioner, Saudamini Sahoo had knocked on the doors of the Supreme Court and sought a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry into her daughter's death.

New Delhi:The Supreme Court on Thursday asked a petitioner, the mother of a 5-year-old girl who was allegedly kidnapped, raped and killed, to place on record tomorrow, the two orders passed by the Odisha High Court before it, to ensure the Supreme Court for perusal and to proceed in the case tomorrow. A two-judge bench, headed by Justice AM Khanwilkar, also comprising Justice Sanjiv Khanna, asked senior lawyer Mahesh Jethmalani, appearing for the petitioner Saudamini Sahoo, to place the two orders passed by the Odisha High Court in the case.

"Please place the two orders (Odisha High Court's) before us for perusal in the case," Justice Khanwilkar asked the petitioner, Saudamini Sahoo's lawyer, Jethmalani, to place the Odisha High Court's two orders and posted the matter for further hearing to tomorrow. The petitioner, Saudamini Sahoo had knocked on the doors of the Supreme Court and sought a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry into her daughter's death. Jethmalani said that the issue in the case is whether the case was one of organ harvesting or of rape and murder, as has been claimed by the State.

"The facts of this case completely contradict the second possibility," he said. Today, for the state of Odisha, senior lawyer Kapil Sibal and Additional Solicitor General (AAG) Aishwarya Bhati appeared for the CBI before the Supreme Court. The incident took place in Odisha's Nayagarh in July last year. The writ petition was filed by Saudamini under Article 32 for violation of her fundamental rights guaranteed under Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution and therefore sought direction for an independent investigation by the CBI in the rape and murder of the petitioner's 5-year-old daughter.

The petitioner, Saudamini, is an aggrieved party, as she is the mother of the victim who was eventually raped and murdered, and has lost hope in a fair investigation and justice and became a subject of harassment and boycott by the society, as well as the law enforcement agencies, the petition filed by Jethmalani and Ravi Sharma stated. The respondent is the premier investigating police agency, CBI. "It has a major role in the preservation of values in public life and in ensuring the health of the national economy," the petition said.

Read:Nepal SC verdict puts Oli's and Bandhari's plans on the backburner

The petitioner stated that on July 13, 2020, her daughter, was allegedly kidnapped, while playing outside her house. Nine days after the incident, on July 23, 2020, some pieces of the broken skeleton of the child were tied in a bag was found near the backyard of the house belonging to one Biranchi Sahoo. The police officers were treating the petitioner and her family members as criminals and have been completely insensitive towards their complaint.

The petitioner and her husband were picked up on July 26, 2020, and were forced to remain with the police for 12 hours without food and water, and were only dropped at midnight after being tortured and mentally harassed. It is only with the intervention of the Odisha High court on August 11, 2020, the petitioner and her husband got protection, the petition said. The conduct of the probe agency, the Odisha state police, illustrated that they have vested interest in undermining the investigation in as much as already the case has lead to mass protest in the state and the credibility of the state police, crime branch and SIT is at stake, the petition said.

"The state police department cannot be entrusted with the investigation of the alleged offences as their conduct in investigating of the said incident illustrates the fact that they are shielding the real accused persons and diverting the issue," the petition claimed.

Read:SC calls sedition law 'colonial', questions Centre over its utility

(ANI)