Chetan Singh Rathore appointed to lead Dharmasthala case probe team
The Karnataka Government has replaced the head of the Special Investigation Team investigating the 2012 rape and murder case.
The Karnataka Government on Friday appointed Inspector General of Police (CID) Chetan Singh Rathore to lead the Special Investigation Team (SIT) into the 2012 Dharmasthala rape and murder case. Rathore replaces N Shashi Kumar, who requested to be relieved of his duties for personal reasons, according to sources.
The state government issued a rectification order on October 30 to amend its September 24 order. The order also replaced Additional Superintendent of Police Venkatesh Prasanna with Srinidhi, the Additional SP of Hassan district. Other SIT appointments remain unchanged.
The SIT has started reviewing previous investigations by the local police, the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Earlier this week, the team issued notices under Section 160 of the CrPC to more than 15 police personnel to appear for questioning.
On October 29, eight personnel associated with earlier investigations appeared at the Mangaluru office for questioning. These included former SIT officer Kalaimar, head constable Sundar Shetty, woman head constable Savitha Shetty, and retired SIT officer Kushalappa Gowda.
The Supreme Court, in a September 21 judgment, noted lapses in the collection and preservation of forensic evidence during previous probes. The court ordered a de novo investigation by an SIT of experienced investigators and directed that officers from earlier investigations should not be part of the new team.