Tripura scribes press for CBI probe into reporter’s murder

Agartala, Oct 2: Jourlists in Tripura on Monday held an hour-long sit-in demanding a CBI probe into the murder of local television jourlist Santanu Bhowmik on September 20. Eleven jourlists’ organizations, led by Tripura Newspaper Society president Subal Kumar Dey, held the demonstration in front of Mahatma Gandhi’s statue near Raj Bhavan on the Mahatma’s 148th birth anniversary. The organisations have been lighting candle for the last nine days in front of Rabindra Satavarshiki Bhawan in support of their demand and decided to continue the agitation till a CBI enquiry is ordered.

“ Santanu Bhowmik was murdered in front of a large number of police in a mysterious circumstance. Before and after the killing of the jourlist, there has been negligence on the part of Tripura Police. If the CBI probes the killing, the truth would come out,” Dey said while addressing the demonstration. DGP A K Sukla said that police have so far arrested three persons, including the main accused Sachin Debbarma, who was arrested for the killing of the 28-year-old jourlist. 

The State government has rejected the demand for CBI investigation and has already formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by the Inspector General of Police G S Rao to investigate the matter. However, the jourlists’ organizations have rejected the SIT and said the police investigation would not be able to unearth the truth as police is one of the main accused in the case. Subal Kumar Dey said the entire move of the State government was aimed at hiding the truth.