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Supreme Court rejects plea for CBI probe into Pul’s death
A bench, headed by Justice Uday U Lalit, held PIL to be not maintainable since it was filed by an organisation, ‘Social Vigilance Team’, that had nothing to do with the case.
The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to entertain a petition seeking probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the unnatural death of Arunachal Pradesh’s former chief minister Kalikho Pul in August 2016.
A bench, headed by Justice Uday U Lalit, held PIL to be not maintainable since it was filed by an organisation, ‘Social Vigilance Team’, that had nothing to do with the case.
“We cannot let a stranger to intervene in a criminal matter in the given facts. You (organisation) are not even aware of what has been happening with the probe by the police. You claim that the investigation by the police is not proper but you are not in a position to tell us how and why,” observed the bench.
Senior counsel Siddharth Dave, representing the petitioner, sought to persuade the bench that the court had in some other cases did order a CBI probe in the larger public interest at the instance of a third party.
But the bench replied: “These are not the facts in which we can do that. You are a complete stranger. You have not claimed or shown any connection with the family or the case at all.”
Dave then withdrew the petition with a liberty to approach any other appropriate forum.
In July 2016, the SC quashed imposition of President’s rule in Arunachal Pradesh, restoring the Congress government and ouster of Pul who became the CM in February that year, with the support of Bharatiya Janata Party legislators after leaving the Congress.
On August 9, Pul’s body was found in his official bungalow with a purported suicide note, alleging that extraneous considerations influenced the SC’s verdict that led to his ouster as CM.
