CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court on Friday dropped the proceeding of a contempt petition regarding its order for re-investigation by the CID-Crime Branch into alleged involvement of international hockey player Birendra Lakra in the death of his friend Anand Toppo.
Earlier on Wednesday, the single judge bench of Justice Sibo Sankar Mishra had sought a reply to Anand’s father Bandhna Toppo’s petition for initiating contempt proceedings for non-compliance of the July 5, 2023 high court order. Advocate Shivsankar Mohanty made submissions on behalf of the petitioner.
When the matter was taken up on Friday, advocate general AK Parija informed the court that the re-investigation is being carried on by the IG (CID-Crime Branch) and sought permission to allow the IG to hereafter supervise the investigation with the assistance of two senior officers.
Inspector General CID-CB Shefeen Ahamad on his part appeared in person and submitted to the court a written note which indicated that the re-investigation was taken up with effect from August 25, 2023.
“As major part of the investigation depends upon forensic analysis of digital evidences and medico-legal opinions, the same would be looked into subsequently in the due course”, the written note said.
Taking on record the submissions, Justice Mishra directed the IG (CID-CB) to complete the investigation “as soon as possible, preferably within six months”.
Initially, the Commissionerate Police had probed into the case and concluded that it was suicide. On July 5, 2023, the high court had ordered the re-investigation by CID-CB four months after the state police gave a clean chit to Lakra. The high court passed the order after Anand’s father filed a petition seeking intervention for fresh investigation by an independent agency alleging that his son was murdered and Lakra’s role in it could not be ruled out.
