The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday opposed the West Bengal government’s appeal before the Calcutta High Court against the life imprisonment sentence to Sanjay Roy, who was convicted of the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar hospital in Kolkata last year.
The West Bengal government’s appeal against the life imprisonment sentence met with resistance from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday before the Calcutta High Court in the case of the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar hospital in Kolkata last year.
“Only the prosecuting agency can challenge the sentence on the grounds of inadequacy,” CBI told the Calcutta High Court, saying that the state cannot appeal since the CBI has probed the matter.
During the hearing before a division bench comprising Justices Debangshu Basak and Md Shabbar Rashidi, the CBI said that only the prosecuting agency in the case can challenge a sentence. The probe agency asserted that since they investigated the case, the state government lacks the jurisdiction to file an appeal.
Countering the claim of CBI, the Advocate General said that the state police filed the initial FIR in the case, and the matter was only transferred later to CBI. Law and order is under the state’s jurisdiction,” added the Advocate General.
The high Court bench said it would consider submissions from the CBI, the victim’s family, and Sanjay Roy before deciding whether to admit the state government’s appeal.
