Nitish Kumar orders CBI Probe into legislator’s murder

PATNA - Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar Saturday ordered a CBI probe into the murder of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator Raj Kishore Kesri by a woman teacher who had accused him of rape.

The chief minister has ordered a CBI probe after Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi urged him to do so, an official from the chief minister’s office told IANS Saturday.

Kesri, a BJP legislator from Purnia constituency, was stabbed to death Jan 4 in his home by a woman teacher Rupam Pathak, who alleged the politician and his close colleagues had raped her for over three years.

A court had Thursday sent the main accused Pathak, 40, to judicial custody for 14 days.

Bihar police have also arrested a journalist, Navlesh Pathak, editor of Purnia-based English weekly “Quisling,” which first published the report on the sexual abuse against Rupam Pathak.

Modi was under attack from opposition parties and women organisations for allegedly influencing the probe into the case. It was the deputy chief minister who had ruled out a CBI probe into the case three days ago.

Modi Saturday wrote a letter to the chief minister saying that though the Bihar police is competent enough to carry on with the investigation, it will be better to hand the case over to the CBI.

It (CBI probe) is also what the BJP and the family members of Keshri demand, he said in the letter.

“I know it well that Bihar police is more competent than the CBI to probe the case, but since Keshri is from the ruling party, the opposition will continue to raise fingers against the fair and independent probe by Bihar police,” Modi pointed out in his letter.

Opposition parties, including the Congress, the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) and the Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) have demanded a judicial inquiry or a CBI probe into the case.

Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad has also demanded a CBI investigation.