The Supreme Court has ordered a fresh probe by a newly formed Special Investigation Team into the 2012 rape and murder of a 17-year-old student in Karnataka’s Dakshina Kannada district, observing that the lapses in earlier inquiries shocked the conscience of the judiciary.
A bench comprising Justice Sanjay Kumar and Justice Sanjiv Sachdeva set aside an August 30, 2024 ruling by the Karnataka High Court that had turned down a plea by the victim’s mother seeking a reinvestigation. The apex court mandated the new team to finish its investigation within three months and place its findings before the jurisdictional court.
Bar On Previous Investigating Officers
To ensure an impartial inquiry, the bench explicitly barred any police personnel previously connected with the matter from joining the new investigation team. The order stipulated that no officer associated with earlier teams from the Belthangady Police Station, the state Crime Investigation Department, or the Central Bureau of Investigation may participate in the newly ordered probe.
Delivering the judgment, Justice Sachdeva noted that the handling of the evidence and the trajectory of the previous investigations into the brutal rape and murder of a minor caused grave injustice to the victim. The bench observed that the individual previously prosecuted had been found incapable of carrying out the crime, adding that investigators may have allowed the actual perpetrators to manipulate proceedings. The court emphasized that society fails in its core duty when improper investigations shield the real culprits of heinous offences.
Flawed Inquiries And Trial Court Acquittal
The case dates back to October 9, 2012, when the victim disappeared while returning from her classes. Her body was recovered the following day from shrubbery near Mannasanka in Dharmasthala. On October 11, 2012, two local men apprehended a suspect named Santhosh Rao and surrendered him to the authorities. While Rao insisted that he had been falsely implicated, the case was transferred amid major public demonstrations first to the state crime branch and subsequently to the Central Bureau of Investigation, both of which concluded that Rao committed the crime.
The victim’s family consistently contested this theory, alleging the involvement of three other individuals, including one of the men who had initially detained Rao. Acting on an application filed by the victim’s father, the trial court initially ordered a fresh probe, though that directive was later overturned by the High Court.
On June 16, 2023, the trial court acquitted Rao of all rape and murder charges, ruling that the prosecution had failed to establish any circumstance or furnish any evidence connecting him to the offences. The trial judge strongly criticized the investigative authorities for completely mishandling the case during the crucial golden hour immediately following the crime.
High Court Paradox Addressed By Apex Court
The Karnataka High Court subsequently rejected an appeal against Rao’s acquittal along with the family’s petition for a fresh inquiry. While dismissing the plea, the High Court had acknowledged that if Rao was not the perpetrator, another person was responsible, which inherently demanded a reinvestigation.
The victim’s mother then approached the Supreme Court, which intervened to set aside the High Court’s dismissal and institute the independent three-month investigation.
