The CBI told Sealdah court on Sunday that there was an “inordinate delay of around 14 hours” in filing an FIR in the RG Kar rape and murder case by the officer-in-charge of Tala police station, Abhijit Mondal.

Mondal was arrested on Saturday night and produced before the Sealdah court on Sunday along with Sandip Ghosh, former principal of RG Kar.

According to the CBI’s submission, the police made a GD entry past 11pm on August 9 and an FIR a few minutes later. By then the post-mortem report had arrived and it clearly spoke of rape and murder.

The CBI’s lawyers said there was a “conspiracy with hospital authorities and unknown persons” and wrong information were included intentionally.

The court remanded the two in CBI custody till September 17, the day when the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear the case.

The alleged delay in filing the FIR had come up during the last hearing of the case in the apex court on September 9.

“Being OC PS Tala, he failed to ensure registration of FIR despite having received telephonic information at 10.03am, a written complaint from MSVP (Medical Superintendent Vice Principal) at 2.55pm and subsequent complaint from father at 7.30pm and went on to register only a UD (Unnatural Death) case at 11.30pm vide GD Entry No 576 with an inordinate delay of around 14 hours,” the CBI’s forwarding note to the judge says.

A CBI source said the FIR was lodged 15 minutes after that.

The note adds: “Being OC PS Tala, he failed to ensure registration of the FIR as per provisions of section 173 BNSS (Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita) in such type of heinous crime in spite of having known that it was a cognizable crime.”

Section 173 of the BNSS states that “every information relating to the commission of a cognizable offence... if given to an officer in charge of a police station orally, shall be reduced to writing by him or under his direction, and be read over to the informant; and every such information, whether given in writing or reduced to writing as aforesaid, shall be signed by the person giving it...”.

“Registration of 1st GD (General Diary) Entry No 542 mentioning the ‘body of PG trainee of RG Kar MCH was found lying in unconscious state at the Seminar room of Chest Medicine” thereby in conspiracy with hospital authorities and other unknown persons “intentionally mentioned wrong facts whereas the dead body was already examined by a doctor and found the victim dead”.

Mondal was also accused of failing to secure the “scene of crime” thereby allowing access “of unauthorised persons”.

Vital evidence was damaged, the lawyers representing the central investigating agency told the court.

“Being OC PS Tala, he failed to cordon Scene of Crime (SoC) to preserve and protect the SoC which led to access of unauthorised persons to the SoC causing damage of vital evidences available at the SoC thereby trying to protect accused Sanjay Roy and others who unauthorized access the SoC which might have resulted in tampering with the evidence,” the CBI note says.

Delay in issuing the death certificate of the junior doctor resulted in the subsequent delay in carrying out the inquest and post-mortem of the victim, the CBI lawyers said.

“Being OC PS Tala he failed to ensure timely ascertaining of the condition of the victim and issuance of death certificate of victim and thereby causing subsequent delay in conducting inquest, Post Mortem, etc.”

This newspaper has seen the forwarding note presented by the CBI to the Sealdah court on Sunday.

The call records available with the central investigating agency reveal numerous calls were exchanged between Mondal and Ghosh on August 9, CBI sources said. The first call from Ghosh to Mondal that day went at 10.03am, they said.

Mondal reached the crime scene almost an hour later, around 11am, the CBI lawyers told the court.

The CBI said Mondal, as the officer-in-charge, allowed the cremation of the victim in a “hurried manner” even though the “family members specifically demanded a second autopsy”.

Mondal was arrested on Saturday after almost seven hours of questioning at the CBI’s office in CGO Complex at Salt Lake. CBI officers later said Ghosh, who was in judicial custody following his arrest on September 2, was “shown arrest” in the RG Kar rape and murder case.

Mondal’s lawyer told the court that the officer in charge responded every time he was summoned. He added that a departmental proceeding could be initiated against him for alleged failure in performing his duties but he can’t be held responsible and arrested.

“He is a public servant. He may be granted bail on any terms and conditions,” Mondal’s lawyer pleaded.

After hearing both sides the judge passed the order, allowing CBI custody for three days.