Bengal: CBI under fire for 'eroding public trust' with long list of unsolvable cases

The question that is being asked in Bengal is whether the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) under the BJP reign has morphed into an 'ostentatious peacock' from an UPA-era caged parrot?

The central agency’s failure to submit any admissible evidence before the court to substantiate its conspiracy claims in the RG Kar rape-murder case, which eventually led to the grant of bail to the two accused, lends credence to this evolutionary theory.

The CBI arrested former principal of RG Kar Medical College and Hospital Sandip Ghosh and the former officer-in-charge of the Tala police station Abhijit Mandal on September 14 accusing them of destroying evidence and criminal conspiracy.

Failure to prove charges

Both were granted bail by a special court on December 13 for the investigating agency’s inability to frame charges against them within the stipulated 90 days, rekindling protests for justice. The agency claimed to have evidence of attempts made to influence the autopsy and derail the case.

It also reportedly had evidence that the victim's cremation was done hastily against the wishes of her family members.

The agency also had proofs of tampering of CCTV footages and telephonic conversations between the two accused after the body was recovered. These were some of the leads that the CBI reportedly got to draw the conclusion that Ghosh and Mandal were trying to hush up the crime.

Also watch | RG Kar rape-murder | Bengal doctors' protest: CBI probe faces backlash

CBI failure triggers protests

The question now is that if the CBI has substantial evidence, why has it failed to file a chargesheet?

The failure has raised serious questions about the integrity of its claims and cast a shadow over the investigation, triggering a fresh bout of protests seeking justice for the 31-year-old PG trainee doctor, who was brutally raped and killed in the hospital premises on August 9.

Disappointed by the CBI’s investigation into the case, the West Bengal Joint Platform of Doctors (WBJPD) has resumed its protest. The forum, the victim's parents and political parties are back on the streets demanding justice.

On December 14, the WBJPD marched to the CBI office at the CGO complex in Salt Lake. The victim's parents also took part in the rally.

“We will fight till the end to get justice. Along with the legal battle, the fight on the streets will continue,” the victim’s father told the media.

The Socialist Unity Centre of India (Communist) and the CPI(M) affiliated Students Federation of India also took to the streets, threatening to intensify their agitation for justice.

A 10-day sit-in demonstration has been planned by the WBJPD in Kolkata from December 17.

Also read: Karnataka withdraws general consent to CBI to probe cases in state

CBI and political masters

“There are legitimate reasons for people to feel disillusioned with the CBI’s investigations,” said Debashis Chakrabarti, a political commentator and Commonwealth Fellow. “The agency has repeatedly failed to substantiate its claims in numerous high-profile cases under its purview.”

The country’s premier investigative agency has long faced criticism for its perceived lack of autonomy.

Famously described as a “caged parrot” by a Supreme Court judge during the Congress-led UPA regime, the CBI has been historically accused of downplaying corruption cases to shield the interests of its political patrons.

Today, the agency finds itself under fire once again – this time for what critics allege is a pattern of selectively targetting Opposition-led governments.

“Instead of maintaining impartiality, the CBI’s actions increasingly appear to escalate the stakes in cases involving political adversaries of the ruling party, fuelling accusations of bias and eroding public trust,” Chakrabarti added.

The RG Kar is not the only instance in which the CBI failed to live up to the hype surrounding the case. It has also happened in other cases being investigated by the agency in the state.

CBI's failures in Bengal

For example, it has failed to make much headway in almost all the cases – from the Saradha chit-fund case to cash-for-jobs scams.

Earlier this year, the Supreme Court held as maintainable the West Bengal government's suit alleging misuse of the CBI by the Central government.

The agency’s latest penchant for grandstanding saw it seeking the transfer of 2021 Bengal post-poll violence cases outside the state claiming 'hostile environment prevailing in the courts of Bengal'.

SC pulls up CBI

Taking serious exception to the "scandalous allegations", the Supreme Court in September pulled up the CBI for casting aspersions on the entire judiciary ofthe state.

Needless to say, the CBI’s lacklustre performance has peeved the BJP, which has been hoping to get political mileage once the cases are upheld by the court.

“Partha Chatterjee, Sandip Ghosh, Abhijit Mandal – the entire bunch of Trinamool super-crooks get bail. CBI is seen as an impotent agency, incapable of or DISABLED FROM filing a chargesheet within 90 days. As a former BJP leader, I am hard put to answer questions from public who all accuse the BJP of 'setting'. In the name of Ma Kali, say or do something! There's just about a year left for the 2026 election to the state Assembly! BJP will be wiped out! (sic),” former BJP state president Tathagata Roy posted on X, tagging BJP leader Amit Shah in the post.

Unsolved cases in Bengal

Chatterjee is the former education minister of the state. He was arrested by the CBI in the cash-for-jobs scam.

The Supreme Court last week set a February 1 deadline for granting conditional bail to Chatterjee in a money laundering case related to the alleged cash-for-job scam while giving direction to speed up the trial against him.

In Bengal, the list of CBI’s unsolved cases includes Rabindranath Tagore’s Nobel theft case, Nandigram case, Tapasi Malik murder case, multiple cases involving the chit fund scam, Narada sting operation, coal smuggling, cattle smuggling, post-poll violence case among others.

But the CBI's long list of unsolved cases is not just restricted to Bengal, it seems. According to the latest annual report of the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC), over 6,900 corruption cases probed by the CBI are pending trials in different courts across the country.