Ex-director's report on Ruchika case can't be made public, says CBI

The Central Bureau of Investigation has refused to make public the details of recommendations made by its former Joint Director R M Singh in Ruchika Girhotra molestation case citing exemption clauses of the Right to Information Act. Singh had alleged that former Director General of Police S P S Rathore, convicted for molesting 14-year-old Ruchika, managed to get the charge of abetment of suicide dropped from the chargesheet besides making attempts to bribe officers handling the probe.

Replying to an RTI application filed by Abhishek Shukla, the agency said "CBI has recently registered three cases 1, 2 and 3(S)/2010. The investigation is under progress. Disclosure of this process may impede the process of investigation and apprehension and prosecution of the offenders." A sessions court in Chandigarh would pronounce its verdict on Thursday on the appeal of Rathore who was held guilty in December 2009 of molesting Ruchika in Panchkula town in August 1990. She committed suicide three years later.

The court will also decide on CBI's plea for enhancement of Rathore's sentence. The former CBI joint director, who was then in-charge of the probe, had claimed that he had recommended bringing molestation charges, the charge of abetment to suicide, forging of document in his report and alleged that Rathore had made attempts to bribe him to influence his recommendations. The RTI applicant had demanded from the agency Singh's final report and recommendations made by him during the probe of the molestation case. He also sought to know if Singh had made recommendations for pressing charges under section 306, abetment to suicide, to then CBI Director R K Raghvan.

The agency refused to disclose any details about the investigations of Singh which were carried out nearly 10 years ago as well as his recommendations. "Further, disclosure of this information may also constitute contempt of court since a public interest litigation is pending before Punjab [ Images ] and Haryana High Court and appeal preferred by the convict is pending before Sessions Court at Chandigarh," CBI said in the RTI reply.