Kapil Sibal ‘laughs’ in SC amid hearing on Kolkata case, SG Tushar Mehta responds: ‘…somebody has died’

While senior lawyer Kapil Sibal is representing the West Bengal government, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta appears for the CBI.

Updated on: Aug 22, 2024, 22:06:21 IST

By HT News Desk, New Delhi

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Kapil Sibal allegedly laughed during Thursday's hearing in the Supreme Court on the Kolkata case, leading to Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta reprimanding the senior lawyer as ‘somebody has died.’

A screengrab from livestreaming on today's arguments in the Supreme Court (x.com/amitmalviya)

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The apex court has taken suo motu cognisance of the alleged April 9 rape-murder of a trainee doctor by a civic volunteer of the police, at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata.

Sibal is representing the West Bengal government, while Mehta appears for the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is probing the case on directions of the Calcutta high court.

Also Read: CBI gets nod for polygraph test on ex-principal, 4 others in Kolkata probe

The laughter incident occurred while an exchange was underway between Sibal, the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) president, and Mehta; the SG was pointing out the ‘gaps’ in the registration of the FIR by the police.

“…so this is from the general entry,” the SG stated, prompting an intervention from the West Bengal government's lawyer.

“A girl has lost her life in the most inhuman and undignified manner. Somebody has died. Do not at least laugh.” the Solicitor General responded to his allegedly laughing rival.

A video of the moment is viral on social media.

Sharing the 32-second-long clip, Amit Malviya of the BJP, slammed Sibal for his ‘complete insensitivity.’

“Like (West Bengal CM) Mamata Banerjee, the legal team representing the WB Govt, led by former Congressman Kapil Sibal, showed no remorse, whatsoever, for having killed the young doctor twice…Solicitor General Tushar Mehta had to remind Kapil Sibal ‘not to laugh’,” Malviya wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

The CBI informed the bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, that by the time investigation was handed to the agency, ‘everything had been altered.’

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