Supreme Court directs CBI to conduct preliminary inquiry into deaths of 3 Dalits in MP

The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to conduct a preliminary inquiry into the suspicious deaths of a Dalit woman and two members of her family in Madhya Pradesh [Badi Bahu v. State of Madhya Pradesh and Anr].

The case involves allegations that a close aide of the State’s former Home Minister Bhupendra Singh was involved in the killings.

The order was passed by a Bench of Justice MM Sundresh and Justice N Kotiswar Singh while hearing a plea by the victim’s mother seeking a CBI or Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into the alleged molestation and murder of her 20-year-old daughter on May 26, 2024.

The top court had last year sought responses from the State of Madhya Pradesh and the CBI on the plea seeking an independent probe into the deaths.

According to the plea, the woman was killed along with the petitioner’s brother-in-law in May 2024.

The plea further said that the petitioner’s son, 18-year-old Nitin, had been allegedly murdered by the same group a year earlier.

The murders were allegedly committed as part of a string of retaliatory acts after the petitioner's daughter filed a criminal complaint in 2019 against certain members from the dominant Thakur community.

The petitioner alleged that the accused persons have close links with former Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Bhupendra Singh.

The case arose from a 2019 incident when the petitioner’s daughter, then 15 years old, filed a complaint alleging that four villagers assaulted and molested her, hurled caste-based abuses and threatened to kill her if she approached the police.

The plea alleged that instead of acting against the accused, the police falsely implicated and arrested the petitioner’s son, Vishnu.

Later, in August , another son of the petitioner, Nitin, was allegedly beaten to death by the same group.

Although an FIR was registered, the petitioner claimed that several allegations were omitted, including claims that she had been disrobed during the attack and that her house was vandalised.

The FIR also allegedly did not name one accused, Ankit Singh Thakur, who is said to have close ties with Bhupendra Singh.

According to the plea, the petitioner’s daughter repeatedly approached authorities seeking inclusion of the accused and complained about threats to settle the case.

She was also allegedly summoned by Bhupendra Singh and offered ₹2 crore to compromise the matter.

The petition stated that the petitioner’s daughter and her brother-in-law Rajendra were key witnesses in the murder case relating to Nitin’s death.

In May 2024, Rajendra was allegedly beaten to death. A day later, while returning in an ambulance carrying his body, the petitioner’s daughter also died in suspicious circumstances.

While the police claimed that she fell from the vehicle, the petitioner has alleged foul play.

The plea has sought a CBI investigation into the deaths and transfer of the criminal proceedings in the 2019 and 2023 cases outside Madhya Pradesh, alleging that the local police failed to conduct a fair investigation and that witnesses are being threatened.

Senior Advocate Colin Gonsalves with advocate Meenesh Dubey appeared for the petitioner.