Uttar Pradesh chief minister Mayawati on Sunday recommended a CBI inquiry into the alleged murder of Mahendra Sharma, a clerk in the UP health department, whose body was found at his official quarters in Lakhimpur on February 15.
The chief minister appears to want to wash her hands off any controversy that is likely to emerge over the local police’s suspicious role.
The post-mortem report into Mahendra Sharma’s death had claimed that he had been smothered to death, but eight days after his body was recovered the local police produced a “suicide note” that claimed the deceased was committing suicide following harassment by his superior officers.
Mahendra Sharma’s death is reportedly linked to the multi-crore National Rural Health Mission scam. He was reportedly being harassed by the Lakhimpur chief medical officer, Dr J.P. Bhargava, and three others to fabricate and sign some documents related to NRHM.
Sharma had gone missing from his home on February 7. His decomposed body was found inside his flat on February 15. The post-mortem report said that he had died around February 12.
On a report filed by his wife, a case for murder and conspiracy was registered against the CMO, deputy CMO, medical superintendent and three others by the local police, but no arrests have yet been made in the case.
Sharma’s family has repeatedly been demanding a CBI probe into the murder, which is the sixth ever since the NRHM scam came to light in the state last year.