Patna: In a significant development, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday formally took over the case related to suspected rape and death of a 17-year old NEET aspirant in Patna early last month, and also registered an FIR in this connection
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar on January 31 had urged the Centre to hand over the investigation into the death of NEET aspirant to the CBI. A day before, the parents of the girl had met director general of police (DGP) Vinay Kumar at his residence, alleging that the police were trying to hush-up the case by denying sexual assault and also by claiming that it was a case of suicide.
The NEET aspirant, hailing from Jehanabad district, was found unconscious in her hostel room, where she was staying to prepare for medical entrance examination, on January 6, and died at a private hospital five days later. An FIR was filed at Chitragupta police station in the case on January 9. Police also arrested the hostel building owner on January 15.
The preliminary test conducted by doctors had concluded that the death was caused by an overdose of sleeping pills, and that she was also suffering from typhoid. However, a team of doctors from Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH) who conducted post-mortem of the girl's body concluded that ‘sexual violence could not be ruled out as a reason behind the incident. Later, the state government formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) on January 16 after the post-mortem report surfaced in the public domain.
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On the other hand, FSL report also revealed that the student`s clothes detected traces of semen, a finding that suggested sexual assault of the girl. A DNA profile was prepared from the sample so it could be matched with those of suspects. Based on this, the SIT collected DNA samples from more than 20 people including the hostel building owner. The SIT was also reportedly planning to collect blood samples from eight more suspects for further DNA analysis.
