Kolkata: The Calcutta High Court on Tuesday dismissed the Bengal government’s appeal against the National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe into the 2018 Darivit High School firing case, observing that it was satisfied with the progress made so far.
A division bench of Justices Sabyasachi Bhattacharyya and Supratim Bhattacharya noted that serious allegations had been raised against the state police, who function under the direct supervision of the state government. In such a situation, the bench said, it would not be fair in the interest of justice to allow the investigation to remain with the same authorities against whom charges had been levelled, even without casting any aspersion on them.
The case stems from an incident in September 2018 at Darivit High School in the Islampur block of North Dinajpur district, where firing and bombing during protests allegedly led to the deaths of two former students, Tapas Barman and Rajesh Sarkar. The victims’ families had moved the High Court alleging police inaction, following which a single bench transferred the probe to the NIA.
The division bench observed that substantial progress had been made, keeping in mind that the agency was handed the investigation at a much later stage, when some evidence may have already been lost. During the hearing, the NIA submitted a progress report and informed the court that it was awaiting an FSL report. While seeking expeditious completion, the bench directed the agency to file its final report at the earliest.
Counsel for the victims’ families raised concerns over delays, noting that about one-and-a-half years had passed since the NIA took over, that a second autopsy was awaited, and that compensation had not been paid.
The bench clarified that it did not favour court-monitored investigations, stressing that investigative agencies must be allowed to perform their duties independently.