Karnataka Sets Up Five-Member SIT Led by N. Shashikumar to Reopen Soujanya Case
Karnataka has constituted a five-member SIT under IGP N. Shashikumar to conduct a fresh probe into the 2012 Soujanya case, with a three-month deadline set by the Supreme Court.
The Karnataka government has constituted a five-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to carry out a fresh investigation into the 2012 Soujanya case, which was registered at Belthangady Police Station in Dakshina Kannada district and later re-registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
Inspector-General of Police N. Shashikumar will head the team. The other members are Mangaluru City Police Commissioner C.H. Sudheer Kumar Reddy, State Intelligence Superintendent of Police Nisha James, Criminal Investigation Department (CID) Superintendent of Police Lokesh Jagalsar, and Bengaluru Rural Additional Superintendent of Police Venkatesh Prasanna.
The decision to form the SIT follows directions from the Supreme Court, which was hearing a special leave petition filed by Kusumavathi Gowda, Soujanya's mother. The court asked the State government to complete the fresh investigation within three months and place a report before it, and specifically ordered that an SIT be set up for the purpose.
According to the government order, the SIT has been given jurisdiction across Karnataka under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023. It has been declared a police station for the State's territorial jurisdiction under Section 2(1)(u) of the BNSS, and its investigating officers are authorised to file a police report before the competent court under Section 193 of the same law.
The team will work under the supervision of the Director-General and Inspector-General of Police, Karnataka. It has three months to finish the comprehensive investigation and submit its final report to the competent court. Once the probe is complete, the DG&IGP will submit a report to the State government.