There is a proposition of law, not a political matter, a child is dead: Tushar Mehta to SC

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, a senior lawyer for the Central Bureau of Investigation, told the Supreme Court of India stating that there is a proposition of law and that is in connection with the petition filed by the mother of a five-year-old girl, who was allegedly kidnapped, raped and killed in July last year.

New Delhi: Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, a senior lawyer for the Central Bureau of Investigation, on Friday told the Supreme Court of India stating that there is a proposition of law and that is in connection with the petition filed by the mother of a five-year-old girl, who was allegedly kidnapped, raped and killed in July last year.

"There is a proposition of law, this is not a political matter. A child is dead," Mehta for the CBI submitted it to the apex court bench, headed by Justice A M Khanwilkar and also comprising Justice Sanjiv Khanna.

The Supreme Court was hearing the petition filed by the petitioner, Saudamini Sahoo seeking a CBI inquiry into her daughter's death that took place in Odisha's Nayagarh in July last year.

The Supreme Court had today also asked Mahesh Jethmalani, the senior lawyer appearing for the petitioner Saudamini Sahoo to file his Special Leave Petition. To this, Jethmalani replied, yes, and said, he will do it in his SLP as well.

The Supreme Court will hear the matter on August 17. "This is a case involving the murder of a 5-year-old girl," Jethmalani submitted to the Apex Court. The petitioner Saudamini Sahoo, the mother of the five-year-old girl, who was allegedly kidnapped, raped, and killed in July last year, had moved the Supreme Court seeking a CBI inquiry into her daughter's death.

She had already placed the records and two Odisha High Court's orders complying with the SC's order. The writ petition has been filed by Saudamini under Article 32 for violation of her fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 14 & 21 of the Constitution of India and therefore seeks a direction for an independent investigation to be conducted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the rape and murder of Petitioner's 5-year-old daughter, the petition said.

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The petitioner, Saudamini, is an aggrieved party, and "she 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 the petitioner's lawyer, Mahesh Jethmalani, and Ravi Sharma, stated.

Respondent 1, is the premier investigating police agency, CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation). "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.

The petitioner stated that on July 13, 2020, her daughter, was allegedly kidnapped, when she was playing outside her house. Nine days after the incident, on July 23, 2020, some pieces of the broken skeleton of the girl child being tied with a bag and dumped under garbage were found from a distance of 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 for 12 hours with the police, without any food and water and were only dropped in mid-night 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 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.

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(ANI)