New Delhi:

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has flagged a fake letter written by a fictitious senior officer alleging political interference in the probe into the rape and murder case of a junior doctor in a Kolkata medical college and hospital.

The letter, which was widely circulated on social media, was signed by a certain “Dr Akash Nag”, ostensibly an Indian Police Service officer working in the CBI.

There is no officer in the CBI by the name “Dr Akash Nag” or the designation mentioned in the fake letter, the CBI said in a statement posted on X.

The fictitious officer in the letter addressed to the Ministry of Home Affairs said he wished to withdraw from investigating the case of the rape and murder of the junior doctor in Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital due to “undue political and social pressures”.

The CBI in the statement asked the public to ignore the letter and “any similar mischievous communication”.

Clarification Regarding a Fake Letter About CBI Investigation of a Case Related to Rape and Murder of Trainee Doctor pic.twitter.com/6CtrugkX53

— Central Bureau of Investigation (India) (@CBIHeadquarters) August 20, 2024

“It is clarified that the said letter is a fake one. The investigation is being handled by the CBI headquarters in Delhi. Moreover, there is no officer in the CBI by the name and designation of Dr Akash Nag, DIG, Joint Director, Crime Branch, ACB Kolkata. The contents of the said letter are false and hence vehemently denied,” the CBI said.

The CBI said it is conducting the investigation “observing all standard procedures and through professionalism.”

The fake letter comes amid a war of words between leaders of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s party Trinamool Congress and the BJP-led central government over allegations that the local police did not perform a thorough initial investigation into the macabre case.

Trinamool Congress MP Sukhendu Sekhar Roy had in a social media post demanded the questioning of Kolkata police chief Vineet Goyal over claims that the college principal, Sandip Ghosh, initially said the junior doctor died by suicide.

Another Trinamool leader, however, criticised his party colleague for casting doubt on the police. Trinamool’s Kunal Ghosh said Sekhar Roy’s “protest against the crime is right, but I vehemently oppose his demands.”

The parents of the junior doctor told NDTV on Sunday they have lost trust in Ms Banerjee, given the way the police handled the case. “Earlier I had full faith in her (Mamata Banerjee), but not now. She is asking for justice, but what is she saying that for? She is doing nothing,” the father of the murdered doctor told NDTV.

Sanjay Roy, a civic volunteer who worked in the hospital and who was seen on CCTV leaving the suspected crime scene, is the key accused in the case. He has been arrested.