Human Rights Front - HRF: August 2014

L to R( Kuldeep's son & wife,Manoj Jena,Kuldeep's father & HRF member)

Human Rights Front (HRF) today welcomed the Odisha High Court order asking the Superintendent of Police (SP) of Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Bhubaneswar to probe the alleged custodial death of an accused Kuldeep Mohapatra in the Saheed Nagar police station on June 5, 2012.

Mr Manoj Jena, chairman, Human Rights Front (HRF). While addressing a press

Deceased Kuldeep Mohapatra

conference accompanied by the deceased’s father Mr Rabindranath Mohapatra and widow Ms Swagatika Mohapatra, Mr Jena claimed that this is for the first time when the premier Central investigating agency has been entrusted with an alleged custody death case in the state. He said that the Court has added superintendent of police (SP), CBI, Bhubaneswar as opposite party no 4 and asked him to submit a report about the cause of Kuldeep’s death within four weeks. It may be mentioned here that Kuldeep (27) was picked up by Shaheed Nagar police on 5 June 2012 on charges of extorting money from truckers on the national highway impersonating as a police official.

The Court further directed the Central agency to submit a report on the cause of death of the accused within four weeks.

HRF did a fact finding of this case immediate after the incident and submitted a petition before National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) seeking due justice and at the same time demanded for CBI inquiry through a press conference.

The victim’s father, Rabindranath Mahapatra, also expressed satisfaction over the CBI inquiry ordered by the court.

“Now that the court has ordered a CBI inquiry, I hope that I will get justice,” Mahapatra said. “I have full faith on the CBI officials and I am sure they will find out the truth in the incident and charge the responsible persons involved in the case.”

Maintaining that the death of his son took place under mysterious circumstances, he held the then IIC responsible for the torture that led to his son’s death.

“After failing to get any justice from the State Government machinery and its police I, with support from HRF, had filed a writ petition in Odisha High Court in October, 2012 praying for a CBI inquiry,” he said.

News Link :

HC orders CBI probe into custodial death

http://www.thestatesman.net/news/74073-hc-orders-cbi-probe-into-custodial-death.html

Odisha High Court ordered a CBI probe into alleged custody death of human rights activists

http://www.orissadiary.com/CurrentNews.asp?id=52987

Odisha rights body, victim’s family hail CBI probe into custodial death

http://odishasuntimes.com/82381/odisha-rights-body-victims-family-hail-cbi-probe-custodial-death/