File. | Photo Credit: VIVEK BENDRE
The Bombay High Court on Friday (September 6, 2024) ordered the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to investigate the murder of Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and former Greater Mumbai Municipal Council member Abhishek Ghosalkar, who was shot dead during a Facebook Live. The High Court noted several lapses in the initial investigation by the crime branch of the Mumbai Police. It also shows that the police did not investigate the case from a certain angle as it should have done.
Noting the loose ends in the case, the Division Bench comprising Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Shyam C. Chandak passed the order on a petition filed by Tejasvee Abhishek Ghosalkar, widow of Mr. Ghosalkar.
The Bench said, “Investigations of crimes registered at the MHB Colony Police Station, which have been handed over to the crime branch, have now been transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The Zonal Director of the CBI has been directed to appoint an officer of the rank of not less than Inspector of Police from the IPS cadre to head investigation.CBI may appoint its own team of officers.Relevant parts of investigation will be handed over to CBI as soon as possible, and not later than two weeks from today.
Abhishek Ghosalkar was shot three times on February 8 evening when he was speaking live on Facebook (Meta) about his political work. The attacker, Mauris Noronha, then shot himself dead. The incident took place in IC Colony, Borivali, on the outskirts of Mumbai. Mr Ghosalkar was taken to Karuna Hospital in north Mumbai but was declared dead on arrival.
Hearing the petition, the Bench said, “The Crime Branch has not properly investigated the cold-blooded murder of her deceased husband, nor has it investigated all the angles, much less investigated other angles, which would point to the involvement. or the involvement of anyone, other than Mauris , who shot himself, sent the deceased. The police have not investigated a certain angle of the case, and this will cause a miscarriage of justice. The murder was seen live on Facebook, which was broadcast from Mauris Noronha’s office.
“The maze of suspicious circumstances has not been pierced and solved and most importantly, some important aspects that need to be investigated have not been investigated. If all the angles of the case are not examined like the current case, it will cause a violation of justice,” he said.
During the hearing, the petitioner’s counsel, Bhushan Mahadik, showed CCTV footage to the Bench which showed the incident on the day of the incident and the previous day. Mr. Mahadik said that due to unknown reasons, the police failed to investigate all angles, even though the petitioner and his family pointed out the same to senior officials.
“We feel that some angles have not been investigated and therefore, a deeper investigation should be conducted. We have reviewed the investigations conducted and found that there are some points/areas which have not been investigated by the police,” the Bench said.
One factor that the court may consider is that the transfer is essential to maintain public confidence in the impartial working of state agencies. A mere allegation against the police will not be a sufficient basis for transferring the investigation. It is trite if it becomes necessary to provide credibility and instill confidence in the investigation, the investigation can be transferred to another agency. Undeniably, the quality of investigations is an important aspect of detecting crimes and bringing criminals to book, the court order read.
After observing the petition, the Bench said it is appropriate to transfer the investigation to an independent agency like the CBI to maintain public confidence, and directed the zonal director of the CBI to appoint an officer not of the rank of Superintendent of Police from the IPS Cadre to investigate the case. The Bench ordered the investigation papers to be submitted to the central investigation agency at the earliest, within two weeks, and disposed of the matter.
Published – 06 September 2024 22:41 IST
