It directed the SIT to conclude the probe within three months and file its report before the court concerned. (File Photo)Nearly 14 years after the rape-murder of a 17-year-old girl in Karnataka’s Dakshina Kannada district, the Supreme Court Monday ordered a fresh probe by an SIT, saying that the manner in which the earlier investigation was conducted “shocks” its “conscience”.Allowing the appeal by the victim’s mother, a bench of Justice Sanjay Kumar and Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva set aside the August 30, 2024 Karnataka High Court judgment dismissing the family’s plea for a fresh investigation. In 2023, the trial court had acquitted Santhosh Rao, named as accused by the police, of rape and murder charges.In a stinging indictment of the earlier investigation, the SC ordered that “no officer who was part of the investigation teams of the Belthangady Police Station, the CID or the CBI who had been associated with the earlier investigation shall be part of the SIT”.It directed the SIT to conclude the probe within three months and file its report before the court concerned.Writing for the bench, Justice Sanjiv Sachdeva said, “In a case where a minor girl of 17 years of age is brutally raped and murdered, the manner in which the investigation had progressed and the manner in which the various investigating agencies conducted the investigation and gathered and evaluated the evidence shocks the very conscience of the court. The person who was prosecuted was held to be incapable of committing the offence. Clearly, the investigation has been conducted in a manner that causes injustice to the victim. The possibility of the real culprit(s) manipulating the investigation cannot be ruled out. Such lax and improper investigation gives a premium to the Investigating Officers who failed to do their job correctly and diligently.”Also Read | 16-year-old killed after gangrape in Delhi, decomposed body found in fieldThe judgment said, “Society would be failing in its duty if it does not provide justice to the victim of such a heinous crime by conducting a proper investigation and bringing the real culprits to the book.”The victim had gone for her classes on October 9, 2012, but did not return home. The next day, her body was found in a bush near Mannasanka in Dharmasthala. Two men caught the accused Rao on October 11 and handed him over to the police. He, however, claimed that he was being falsely implicated. Following a massive public outcry, the case was later handed over to the Crime Branch and subsequently to the CBI. The investigations concluded that Rao was behind the crime.Story continues below this adThe family, however, suspected the role of three others, including one who had apprehended Rao. Based on a plea by the victim’s father, the trial court ordered a fresh probe but this was set aside by the HC.On June 16, 2023, the trial court acquitted Rao of murder and rape charges. Coming down heavily on the investigators, it said, “The prosecution had failed to prove that the accused had committed the acts alleged against him. There was no evidence to connect the accused with the crime. There were no circumstances to connect the accused with the charges levelled against him. The charges levelled remained unproved.” The Sessions Court further held that the investigation was “not properly conducted in the golden hour.”The HC dismissed the appeal challenging the acquittal as well as a plea for a fresh probe, but said that “the acquittal judgment has a logical connection with the begging question in the sense that if Santhosh Rao was not the one who committed the crime, there must be somebody else. This definitely demands reinvestigation.”Ananthakrishnan G. is a Senior Assistant Editor with The Indian Express. He has been in the field for over 26 years, kicking off his journalism career as a freelancer in the late nineties with bylines in The Hindu. A graduate in law, he practised in the District judiciary in Kerala for about two years before switching to journalism. His first permanent assignment was with The Press Trust of India in Delhi where he was assigned to cover the lower courts and various commissions of inquiry. He reported from the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court of India during his first stint with The Indian Express in 2005-2006. Currently, in his second stint with the daily newspaper, he reports from the Supreme Court and writes on topics related to law and the administration of justice. Legal reporting is his forte though he has extensive experience in political and community reporting too, having spent a decade as Kerala state correspondent, The Times of India and The Telegraph. He is a stickler for facts and has several impactful stories to his credit. ... Read More Tags:Karnatakasupreme court