Govt sticks to no-CBI-probe decision

Patna: The Bihar government has declined to refer the Muzaffarpur Balika Grih (short stay home for girls) sex scandal case to the CBI because investigation by the police is in its final stages and the case will soon go to court.

A source close to chief minister Nitish Kumar said: “He (Nitish) is of the view that the police probe into the scandal is in its final stages and will be over in the next couple of days. If its handed over to the CBI, it will water down everything and cause inordinate delay in taking it to its logical end.”

Nitish has also asserted that the crime would be an eye-opener for the management of such short stay homes and will bring systemic changes. He has already given a go-ahead for appointment of transgenders as guards at such institutions so that such incidents, especially involving security personnel, does not recur.

The source said the chief minister was keeping a tab on the case ever since it came to light a couple of months ago. At least 29 out of 44 girls staying at the short stay home were raped.

Till now, 10 out of 11 accused have been arrested and there are possibilities of some more persons being arrested on the basis of statements and investigations.

Nitish, who has called the horrible crime, “a result of perverted mentality” has also hinted that the case will reach court in a couple of days. Chargesheet in the case will be filed very soon.

Sources said Nitish was peeved and angry at the disgusting crime in which a journalist Brajesh Kumar Thakur is an accused. Brajesh used to bring out a local vernacular daily from a printing press that operated from the premises of the short stay home.

“The chief minister said nobody could say by seeing the face of a person that he will not commit any crime. He also expressed surprise that the main accused could have turned the crime into a profession. He (Nitish) is very serious over the crime,” a source said.

The chief minister has a point here in not handing over the case to the CBI. The progress in the Srijan government fund transfer scam is an example. There has been very slow progress in the scam worth over Rs 1,300 crore after the case was transferred to the CBI last year. Initial investigations by Bihar Police and its Economic Offences Unit (EOU) were fast and precise.

Courtesy: The Telegraph