The Calcutta High Court has directed that CCTV footage linked to the Baruipur encounter case be preserved and asked investigators to try to complete the probe before the matter comes up for hearing again in three weeks.
A division bench of Justices Arijit Banerjee and Rituparna Mitra issued the direction on Tuesday while hearing a case related to the encounter in Baruipur’s Suryapur area. The investigation is being conducted by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) of the West Bengal Police.
The court said CCTV footage connected with the incident must be preserved. The state informed the bench that the footage had already been secured. The court also directed the authorities to ensure that the investigation progresses quickly, with an effort to complete the process before the next hearing.
The encounter followed the disappearance and death of a minor girl in Suryapur in July. Her body was later recovered from a pond in the area, packed in a sack. Allegations of rape and murder were made in connection with the death, after which tension rose in Baruipur.
Police arrested Prabhas Mondal, Dibakar Sardar, Ananda Sardar and Kabir Molla in connection with the case. Prabhas was arrested first and, according to the report, led police to the location where the girl’s body had been discarded. Ananda and Dibakar were also arrested initially, while Kabir was arrested later.
The encounter took place on the night of July 7, when police took Prabhas to the site for a reconstruction of the incident. Police alleged that he attempted to seize a weapon and escape, and also fired at the police party. According to the police account, Baruipur police station’s police complaint officer-in-charge, Arghya Mondal, fired at Prabhas with his service revolver in what was described as an attempt to protect himself and his colleagues.
Questions were subsequently raised over the encounter, following which the state CID was directed to investigate the incident. The High Court’s latest order places preservation of CCTV footage among the immediate requirements of the probe. Such footage may form part of the evidentiary record examined during the investigation, although the court’s direction does not by itself establish what the recordings show.
The case now returns to the division bench after three weeks. By then, the investigating agency is expected to make an effort to complete its inquiry, while the state will remain responsible for ensuring that the relevant CCTV material remains preserved.
