Chief Minister Raghubar Das on Friday assured the family members of Officer in-Charge of Topchanchi police station Umesh Kachhap, who was found dead in suspicious circumstances in his government quarter on June 17 last, to make the investigation report public tomorrow.
The CM’s assurance came after the family members, including Kachhap’s wife Chandramani Kachhap alongwith former minister Bandhu Tirkey met the former at his office. They apprehended that the facts behind killing may get covered up by the police if there is any further delay in making the report public.
The State government after setting up a two-member high level committee comprising Cabinet Secretary SS Meena and ADG (Anti-Corruption Bureau) Ajay Kumar Singh, had promised a CBI inquiry into the case if the report was not found to be satisfactory by the family members.
“We don’t know what’s happening in the case. Despite a deadline of June 26 having been set by the State government, we were not informed about the report of the high-level committee,” said nephew of Umesh Kachhap, Bipin Kacchap earlier in the day.
“There are fair chances that the police will try to cover up the matter to avoid embarrassment on their part,” he said.
Tribal organisations, on the other hand, had also met Governor Droupadi Murmu on Wednesday to register their grievances.
“We met the Governor and told her that we are being cheated by the State government as no FIR has been registered so far. The Governor, after hearing us patiently, assured that justice will be done in the case,” said President of Adivasi Vikas Parishad Birsa Oraon.
Cabinet Secretary SS Meena when contacted, said that the report has already been submitted to the State Government.
Meanwhile, no FIR has been lodged in this case so far as police still believed it to be a case of suicide. “We have not lodged any FIR in this case, rather a case of unnatural death has been registered which has been forwarded to all senior officials of the department,” said Circle Inspector of Topchanchi Police Station.
Kachhap was found hanging from the ceiling of his government quarter under suspicious circumstances. Family members, however, claiming that Kachhap could not commit suicide and alleging a conspiracy against him, demanded CBI inquiry into the case.
According to wife Chandramani Kachhap, her husband was under pressure for the last 3-4 days since the truck driver was shot at Rajganj under Hariharpur Police Station in Dhanbad.
Following the incident, all three suspected police officials –Baghmara DSP Mazahrul Hoda, Circle Inspector DK Jha and Officer in Charge of Hariharpur Police Station Santosh Kumar Rajak, were called back to Ranchi Police lines and Dhanbad SSP Surendra Nath Jha was asked to keep out of the inquiry so that it does not get influenced by him, he said.