Congress demands court-monitored probe into Bansal's death

The opposition Congress on Wednesday demanded a court-monitored probe into the death of suspended Corporate Affairs Ministry officer B.K. Bansal and his family members.

Bansal, who was being probed in a corruption case by the CBI, and his 31-year-old son committed suicide by hanging themselves from ceiling fans in their apartment here on Tuesday, police said.

The twin suicides came two months after Bansal's wife and daughter had ended their lives.

"Is the allegation of bribery of Rs 9 lakh so big a charge that all the family members had to commit suicide. There is something else behind the whole episode," Congress spokesperson Manish Tewari told media persons here.

"This case should be investigated properly to find out if this was the only reason for committing suicide or there are some other angles to it. Did he (Bansal) know some facts for which pressure was built on him," he asked.

"We demand a court-monitored investigation in this case."

Taking on the Central Bureau of Investigation, which operates directly under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Tewari said: "On November 6, 2013, Gauhati High Court had held that CBI is an illegal organization. The legitimacy of the CBI hangs by the thread of a Supreme Court order. Should the government not go and tell the Supreme Court that the legality of the CBI needs to be adjudicated."

"Till the time the legality of the CBI is not adjudicated and until the Supreme Court decides to agree or disagree with the Gauhati High Court's orders, the CBI should stop taking further cases," he added.

--IANS

sid/vd/dg