MP CM directs SIT formation in retired IAS officer’s murder case

Bhopal: Taking a serious view of the murder of retired IAS officer Rakesh Agrawal, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav has directed the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to ensure an impartial and time-bound probe.

The case is currently being investigated by the Bhopal Police.

On Wednesday evening, office-bearers of the Madhya Pradesh IAS Officers’ Association met Chief Minister Yadav at Samatva Bhavan, the Chief Minister’s residence. They submitted a memorandum seeking an impartial, independent and time-bound investigation into the murder that occurred in Bhopal on September 30.

The association expressed deep concern within the administrative community and society at large over the incident. Those who met the Chief Minister included association president and Additional Chief Secretary Manu Srivastava, and IAS officer VS Chaudhary Kolsani, among others.

Rakesh Agrawal, a 1982-batch Madhya Pradesh cadre officer who retired after serving in senior positions including district collector, secretary and Director General of the RCVP Noronha Academy of Administration, was found dead with his throat slit at his residence ‘Siddhashila’ in Suraj Nagar under the Ratibad police station limits early on September 30.

His wife, who was sleeping in a separate room, discovered the body after finding her door latched from the outside.

Police said a caretaker-cum-male nurse, identified as Varun Kumar (27) from Nabha in Punjab’s Patiala district, who had been hired through a home healthcare agency only a few days earlier, went missing after the incident and remains the prime suspect.

Investigators also found signs of an attempt to set the house on fire, with LPG cylinder pipes disconnected. The suspect is still absconding despite a multi-state manhunt and a reward announced for information leading to his arrest.

The Chief Minister’s directive for an SIT comes more than three weeks after the crime and follows the association’s request for a thorough and independent inquiry. Officials said the move aims to strengthen the ongoing investigation by Bhopal Police and ensure accountability.

Further details on the composition and mandate of the SIT are expected shortly.

--IANS

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