CBI takes over probe in four cases linked to death of Assam lady cop Junmoni Rabha

The CBI has taken over the investigation of four distinct cases from Assam Police, all connected with the death of the state police Sub-Inspector Junmoni Rabha last month in a suspected road accident, according to officials.

The Central Bureau of Investigation will soon call people for questioning and will also meet the doctors who conducted Rabha's autopsy, they said.

Junmoni Rabha, 30, popularly known as 'Lady Singham' or 'Dabang cop', perished on May 16 in the early hours when her vehicle collided head-on with a container truck in Sarubhugia village of Nagaon district's Kaliabor subdivision.

The circumstances of the accident were soon contested by Rabha's mother, who in an FIR alleged that shortly after Rabha's death on May 16, between 1 am and 2 am, Nagaon Superintendent of Police Leena Doley made a raid at her house and forced her to sign some bank documents.

She also made off with Rs 4.30 lakh in cash in the raid, she alleged.

In her complaint, the mother asserted that Doley did not inform her about Rabha's death. Only after daybreak, did another police official tell her about the accident.

She also alleged that Rabha was killed and there were injury marks on her body.

The special crime unit of the CBI has now taken up the investigation into the case along with that of the accident that claimed Rabha's life.

The CBI has also taken over two more cases a case that emanates from a fake currency racket busted by Nagaon Police on May 5 on the information of Rabha, and another one filed against her by a family member of those under scanner in fake currency probe, in which the complainant accused Rabha of raiding her home on May 6 at 2 am, and extorting more than Rs 6 lakh from her having taken her son captive.

It was alleged that Rabha, with seven others, had raided the complainant's residence on May 6 in the Lakhimpur district, 200 kilometres from where she was posted.

The complainant's family was under the scanner for their alleged involvement in a counterfeit currency investigation. During the raid, the police team reportedly assaulted the complainant and abducted her son, along with making off with Rs 80,000 in cash, some jewellery, and a Maruti Brezza car.

The following morning, Rabha contacted the complainant's husband and demanded that he meet her at a location along the Assam-Arunachal Pradesh border with Rs 6 lakh in cash.

According to the FIR, the hostage was released only after the family paid Rabha the ransom, a part of which was paid in cash and the rest via UPI transactions.

An FIR was filed against Rabha in the matter at 9 pm on May 15 in Lakhimpur, hours before she died in the road accident, they said.

On May 15, Rabha was reportedly called to the office of Doley at 3 pm, according to the FIR lodged by her mother, and at 9 pm, the FIR was filed against her in Lakhimpur district. Rabha met with the accident at 1.45 am on May 16.

Around the time the "accident" happened, Doley allegedly conducted a search at Rabha's residence.

Two days after Rabha's demise in a "road accident," an audio clip purportedly recorded by a constable surfaced on social media. The clip suggested that Rabha had been subjected to torture by her colleagues before her death.

Adding to the mystery surrounding the sensational death case, another video clip featuring a different individual circulated widely, suggesting that the deceased policewoman's vehicle was stationary when it was struck by a speeding truck.

Meanwhile, in an unexpected turn of events, Doley, days after Rabha's death, shuffled 148 police constables in the district, citing "the interest of public service" and urging them to report to their new assignments promptly.

Rabha, who was the in-charge of the Morikolong Police outpost, had been known for being strict against criminals but had also been in the news for her alleged involvement in financial irregularities.

In June last year, she was arrested for allegedly doing corruption in league with her former beau and was remanded to judicial custody by a court in Majuli district, leading to suspension from the service. The suspension was lifted later and she rejoined service.

She found herself embroiled in another controversy in January 2022 when a recorded telephone conversation with BJP MLA Amiya Kumar Bhuyan from the Bihpuria constituency was leaked. The exchange involved a heated argument between Rabha and Bhuyan, prompted by Rabha's seizure of country boats illegally fitted with machinery and allegations of harassment of individuals residing in Bhuyan's constituency.

As the leaked audio tape caused a stir, Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma remarked that an elected representative should be accorded due respect.