Perfect strangers may have risen in unison thousands of kilometres away to honour the whistleblower and his whistle but the officials investigating his murder have silently slunk away. In London this evening, Satyendra Dubey was honoured as the world’s foremost Whistleblower of the Year but his parents will have to wait far longer. For the one reward they say they truly long for—the nailing of his killers. From ‘‘road robbery’’ to ‘‘mafia hand,’’ the agency has floated several theories so far. But ever since two key witnesses in the case died of poisoning, CBI officers have stayed away from the place where it all began. They apparently abandoned their post in Gaya after an FIR was lodged against them in connection with the deaths. That was more than one-and-a-half months back. Even assertions by CBI chief U S Misra that this setback would not come in the way of the investigation seems to have been forgotten. Gaya District Magistrate Brajesh Mehrotra, told The Indian Express that just over a month back, a CBI officer had informed him that the agency was keen to return to the scene and resume its investigation. Nothing had been heard of, since then. ‘‘Even the car used by their officers has not been requisitioned,’’ said Mehrotra. The mystifying silence comes even as The Indian Express has learnt that some questions over Dubey’s murder are crying out for answers: • Why, for example, did a politician try to call him the day before his death? • How did his sturdy car suddenly develop a problem with its battery, forcing him to take a rickshaw and become a soft target for his killers? • Where has the rickshaw-puller vanished? • What has the CBI found on the two witnesses who mysteriously died of poisoning on the same day? Sanjay Singh, the Gaya SP, refused to divulge details but suggested that there could be another angle to the deaths—beyond the popular suicide theory. He acknowledged this had probably stalled the probe into the case centering around Dubey’s death. The Indian Express has learnt that the Tata Sumo that was supposed to have ferried him on November 27 last year, the day of his death, had run more than 100 km each on November 24 and 25 without any problems. The vehicle was just two years old. Yet, it suffered a ‘‘sudden discharge of battery’’ forcing him to take a rickshaw. The investigations officer found this assertion ‘‘unsatisfactory’’ as there was no explanation for this. Dubey had also directed his office to record details of all calls to him in his absence. On Nov 26, the day before his death, a prominent local politician called and asked about his whereabouts. This aspect, sources said, was yet to be probed. There is no sign either of the rickshaw puller who was being questioned by the CBI and then disappeared just before he was to take a lie-detector test. In light of this, the CBI chief told The Indian Express that he had ordered a tightening up of procedures regarding questioning of witnesses. ‘‘We are looking for the rickshaw-puller not because he vanished from our office but because he was an important witness for us,’’ said Mishra. Another CBI source said that yet another team had been formed to go to Gaya, but added that carrying out field investigations in the area was not easy. The real reward that Dubey’s parents seek may be sliding out of reach.
