After having arrested IGP Zahur H Zaidi and seven other police officers, the CBI seems to have shifted its action to Delhi for interrogation of the policemen and other witnesses, who were summoned to the national capital in connection with the custodial death of Suraj Singh, a Nepali national who was a suspect in the case of rape and murder of school girl near Shimla. CBI sources said they were better equipped to examine the accused and witnesses in Delhi instead of Shimla, where they lacked wherewithal and staff.
What has added a new dimension to the case was summoning of former SP of Shimla D W Negi on Friday and questioning of Additional SP Bhajan Dev Negi and DSP Rattan Singh Negi earlier. D W Negi, who was shifted from the post of Shimla SP after violent protests erupted in the town and other places, was posted as SP (vigilance).
Meanwhile, the CBI is learnt to have taken permission of a local court for narco-analysis test of five accused, including Rajender Singh alias Raju, driver-cum-orchard manager whom the police had claimed as main accused in the case. Other four are Ashish Chauhan, son of an orchard owner, Subhash Singh Bisht and Deepak, both from Uttrakhand, and Lokjan alias Chottu, also a Nepali national.
Suraj Singh had died in the police custody, for which the CBI has arrested policemen, including the IGP who headed the police SIT to probe the rape-murder. All the eight arrested SIT members have been taken to Delhi for interrogation. The CBI is slated to submit its status report to the Himachal High Court on September 6. Officials said the CBI team, currently in Delhi, will return to Shimla on September 4 when all the police officers would be presented in the court again as their remand ends the same day.
Meanwhile, a senior CBI official, when contacted, declined to comment on newspaper reports relating to DNA of the five accused not matching during the forensic analysis.
