Lucknow: Five days after a Karnataka-cadre IAS officer's body was found in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh police has registered a murder case on a complaint by his family members, who met Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday and pressed for a CBI probe.
Post-mortem had indicated that Anurag Tiwari, 36, had died of asphyxia but police said that an SIT team probing the case was awaiting the test reports of his viscera and blood samples and heart to find the exact cause of the death.
Tiwari's family had alleged that he was murdered at the behest of corrupt officers as he was about to expose a "scam" in the department of food, civil supplies and consumer affairs in Bengaluru where he was posted as commissioner.
The mother and brother of the officer met the Uttar Pradesh chief minister today and requested him to hand over the probe to the CBI, saying they were unhappy with the probe by the state police.
Tiwari's brother Mayank told reporters that the scene of crime has been washed and the mobile phone has been found in unlocked condition.
"We demanded CBI inquiry in order to find out why he was killed," his mother Sushila Devi told newspersons after meeting the chief minister.
""We are not satisfied with the police probe... The chief minister has assured us that justice will be done," Mayank said, adding that the CM told them that every possible step will be taken to nab the culprits and asked them to wait till the SIT probe is completed.
Hours after the meeting, UP police said that it has registered a murder case against unidentified persons in the matter.
"An FIR has been registered in Hazratganj police station against unidentified persons in IAS officer Anurag Tiwari's case under IPC section 302 (murder). The complaint was lodged by his brother Mayanak," Circle Officer, Hazratganj, Avanish Kumar Mishra said.
Mayank had written to the Prime Minister's Office too demanding a CBI inquiry into his brother's death.
In his letter, he said Anurag was an honest officer and wanted to work for the betterment of the society. "A few days back, Anurag had told me that he had stumbled upon a major scam in the Food and Civil Supplies department of Karnataka, which he wanted to inform the PMO and CBI," he wrote.
He also alleged that there was pressure on Anurag to withdraw the report which could have nailed senior officers and ministers, had it come in the public domain.
Sushila Devi made a fervent appeal to the prime minister and chief minister demanding justice for her son.
She said that she wanted to know why an honest officer was killed. She also said that her son never went for morning walk, countering the police which had suggested that he may have gone out for a morning walk when he died.
The UP police had constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the death on May 18.
"The SIT team is yet to submit its report as it is going through all the possible clues and angles meticulously," Senior Superintendent of Police, Deepak Kumar said.
The issue has taken political colour after opposition members raised the matter vociferously in the Uttar Pradesh Assembly to question the law and order situation under the BJP government. The Assemly premises are hardly a kilometre from the spot where his body was found.
However, an Uttar Pradesh Minister said in the House that the officer was about to expose a major scam under the Congress government in Karnataka.
Tiwari, a 2007-batch IAS officer, was staying at the Meera Bai guest house with a batch mate after attending a mid-career training programme at Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration in Mussoorie.
