Bihar govt seeks CBI probe into Patna NEET aspirant’s death; sexual assault suspected

PAtna: The Bihar regime has sought-after(a) a telephone exchange Bureau of investigating (CBI) dig into into the recent death of a female National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) aspirant in Patna, deputy chief minister Samrat Choudhary said on Saturday.“Chief minister Nitish Kumar has urged the government of India to hand over the investigation of the NEET student’s murder case in Patna (Case No.- 14/26) to the CBI. The incident must be thoroughly uncovered in a transparent and just manner,” Choudhary, who also holds the home portfolio, said in his post on X.A Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Bihar police is investigating the case.The deceased, a resident of Jehanabad, was found unconscious in her hostel room in Patna’s Chitragupt Nagar earlier this month. She died at a private hospital on January 11 after remaining in a coma for several days. Her family had alleged that she was sexually assaulted, accusing authorities of attempting a cover-up.The family as well as the Opposition have also been demanding a CBI inquiry, alleging attempts to shield powerful people in the case.The matter flared up on Friday after Bihar Director General of Police (DGP) Vinay Kumar allegedly called the deceased’s family to his residence in Patna and asked the parents to “accept the girl’s death as suicide” and that “there was no instance of sexual assault”.“They are all trying to hush up the case. The girl will not get justice, as nobody is interested in that. It seems that money is being used to shield the accused and suppress the case,” the mother said outside the DGP’s residence in the state capital.The family was also asked to meet the deputy chief minister, but they refused. “Now there is only one option left, to approach the court for justice,” their lawyer said.While the police initially treated it as a case of suicide due to an overdose of sleeping pills, the post-mortem report established sexual assault, which was also highlighted in the inquest report of the investigating officer.Later, the police sent the postmortem report of the medical board at Patna Medical College Hospital (PMCH) to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), Patna, for an opinion. Meanwhile, the forensic report of the victim’s clothes also established traces of sperm of a boy aged around 19–22 years, further fuelling the sexual assault theory.On the basis of the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) report, the police also took blood samples of 30 people for DNA matching. This included several family members of the victim. The DNA reports are still awaited.