Rizwanur case: SC stays HC order for new probe

The Supreme Court on Friday set aside a Calcutta High Court order directing Central Bureau of Investigation to register an FIR and launch a fresh probe against prominent businessman Ashok Kumar Todi in the sensational Rizwanur Rahman murder case.

A bench of Justices P Sathasivam and B S Chauhan also stayed all consequential proceedings arising out of the high court order.

The apex court, however, asked Todi and others to file fresh bail bonds before the trial judge and posted the matter for final disposal to October 5.

The court passed the order on an appeal filed by the CBI challenging the Calcutta High Court order directing it to conduct fresh investigation and registering murder case against Todi.

Appearing for the CBI, Solicitor General, Gopal Subramanium said the high court order was unheard of and in blatant contravention of the Criminal Procedure Code since the agency had already filed the chargesheet in the matter.

He submitted that high court's direction had consequential effects as the trial had come to a stand still and all the accused were discharged.

The apex court said that it will hear CBI's appeal along with the appeal filed by Todi, who has also challenged the division's bench direction.

Todi had on May 28 moved the Supreme Court challenging the Calcutta High Court order.

The division bench of the Calcutta High Court had on May 18 directed the CBI to treat as an FIR the complaint filed by Rukbanur Rahman, elder brother of Rizwanur, on September 21, 2007.

The bench had observed that Justice Soumitra Pal in his earlier order had only directed the CBI to investigate the cause of the death and file a report to it and had not authorised the agency to investigate the alleged crime.

The CBI had then in its report concluded that Rizwanur's death was a case of suicide and recommended initiation of an abetment to suicide case under Section 306 of the IPC.

Rizwanur, a computer graphics teacher was found dead near railway tracks in Dumdum area of Kolkata on September 21, 2007, just a month after his marriage on August 18, 2007, to Priyanka Todi, daughter of industrialist Todi.

Todi, owner of the Rs 200-crore Lux Cozi hosiery brand, his brother Pradip and brother in-law Anil Sarogi are accused in the case along with senior IPS officers then serving in the Kolkata Police.

The GRP was first entrusted with the investigations following, which the state government ordered a CID probe.

After this, the state instituted a judicial probe by a retired high court judge, which was withdrawn after the Calcutta High Court ordered the CBI probe on October 16, 2007.