The Supreme Court has ordered a de novo investigation into the 2012 rape and murder of a 17-year-old girl in Karnataka, holding that serious deficiencies in the earlier investigations required a fresh probe.
A Bench of Justice Sanjay Kumar and Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva delivered the judgment on September 21, 2026, in Kusumavati Gowda v. The Government of Karnataka & Ors. The Court set aside the Karnataka High Court’s August 30, 2024 order dismissing the plea seeking reinvestigation.
Background
The girl went missing on October 9, 2012, while returning from college. Her body was discovered the following day in bushes near Mannasanka. The post-mortem recorded injuries, including a strangulation mark, while the medical examination also recorded injuries indicating sexual assault.
Santhosh Rao was subsequently arrested and prosecuted. The investigation was first conducted by the Belthangady Police, later transferred to the Karnataka CID, and eventually taken over by the CBI. The CBI investigation also continued to implicate Rao while giving a clean chit to three persons whom the victim’s family had suspected.
The Sessions Court ultimately acquitted Rao on June 16, 2023, finding that the prosecution had failed to establish circumstances connecting him with the crime.
The Supreme Court noted several investigative deficiencies, including failure to secure CCTV footage, missing articles of the victim, and improper preservation of the vaginal swab. The Court also noted that DNA examination had found hair belonging to another male individual in material connected with the case.
The Court further observed that potential witnesses were still available and that scientific evidence could potentially be examined even at this stage.
The Bench stated:
“Material witnesses are available and the hair of other persons found and produced as Material Object No. 15 available and if suspected persons found, their blood sample could be collected and on its DNA examination, comparison can be made.”
The Court held that the High Court was therefore not justified in concluding that a fresh investigation would serve no useful purpose.
The Supreme Court ordered a de novo investigation in Crime No. 250/2012 and directed the State of Karnataka to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by a senior police officer and comprising investigators experienced in modern investigative technology.
The Court directed that no officer associated with the earlier investigations by the Belthangady Police, CID or CBI should be part of the new SIT.
The Court also clarified that the acquitted accused, Santhosh Rao, would not be subjected to further investigation or prosecution in view of the constitutional protection against being tried or prosecuted a second time.
The fresh investigation was directed to be completed within three months, after which the police report is to be filed before the competent court in accordance with law.
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