The Kerala High Court has refused to transfer the investigation into the death of Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Naveen Babu to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), dismissing an appeal filed by his widow, Manjusha.
A Division Bench comprising Justices PB Suresh Kumar and Jobin Sebastian upheld an earlier ruling that the current probe by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) was progressing adequately and did not warrant CBI intervention.
Babu was found dead in his official residence on October 15, 2024, just hours after a farewell event marking his transfer. The gathering took a dramatic turn when CPI(M) leader and former Kannur District Panchayat President, PP Divya, publicly accused him of corruption. Following his death, Divya was booked for abetment of suicide, briefly jailed, and later released on bail.
Manjusha had raised serious concerns about the fairness of the investigation, claiming that witnesses were hesitant to testify against Divya due to her political influence. She also pointed to procedural lapses, including a rushed inquest conducted before Babu’s family could even reach the scene.
Despite these arguments, the High Court remained unconvinced, siding with the lower court’s assessment that the existing investigation was on the right track.
