The Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which is investigating the death of GRP sub-inspector Arindam Manna, on Wednesday grilled drivers and guards of trains that passed through Mankundu railway station between 11 pm on February 10 and 10 am the next day.

Manna’s body was found next to the tracks near Mankundu station in Hooghly on the morning of February 11. CID sources said Chandernagore railway station manager Vinod Lal was also questioned. The statement of a person who claimed to have seen Manna on the platform of Mankundu station was also taken, they said, adding he saw Manna loitering on the platform between 7.45 am and 8 am on February 11, indicating he was alive till then.

CID officials said the second autopsy conducted on Manna’s body by forensic experts from the Calcutta Medical College & Hospital (CMCH) detected more than 30 injuries, major and minor.

However, Special IG and DIG (CID) Nirajnayan Pandey, who is investigating the case, said no conclusions could be drawn from the second autopsy report as yet. “We have received the second autopsy report, but not the final findings. It is the latter that states whether the death was due to suicide, accident or murder. We have interrogated the train drivers and guards, but I can’t share any information as of now,” Pandey said.

Meanwhile, the call details of Manna’s Vodafone SIM card requested by the CID show the deceased made his last call at 1.39 am on February 11 on his Dasnagar (Howrah) residence number and then switched off his phone, sources said. “He, however, left the voice mail service on. There were many calls made from the Dum Dum GRP police station, his Dasnagar residence and from his fiancee’s cellphone,” they added.

Manna’s family has appealed to Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya, the state chief secretary and the home secretary to transfer the case to the CBI, failing which they would move court for the same.

Uniform code: GRP sheds plain clothes
Two weeks after the investigating officer in the Rizwanur death case was found dead near railway tracks, the GRP today decided to do away with the “plain clothes party” within the police force. The orders were issued for immediate implementation.

“I came to know of the order from the additional director general (rail) and passed it in form of a circular with orders for strict compliance,” said SRP (Howrah) Tapas Das.

“The decision has been taken to check malpractices. We have been getting reports of plain clothes cops committing atrocities on civilians,” said a senior GRP official. The plain clothes officers were usually involved in special cases and helped arrest many criminals.

“They could easily mix with the crowd and travel in trains to follow criminals. Criminals get alarmed at the sight of uniforms. This was a great advantage,” the official added. The GRP had around 100 plain clothes officials.