'Govt decision comes as relief'; Naveen Babu's family welcomes CBI probe

KANNUR: The family of former Kannur Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Naveen Babu has welcomed the Kerala government's decision to hand over the investigation into his death to the CBI. Speaking to the media, Naveen Babu's wife, Manjusha, said the family had personally met the Chief Minister and the Home Minister to express their concerns about the investigation.

"We received a positive response from them, but we did not expect the case to be transferred to the CBI so quickly," she said.

Naveen Babu's brother, Praveen Babu, also expressed confidence in the CBI investigation. Describing the move as a relief, he said the family initially believed that the police probe was moving in the right direction, but their confidence weakened after the post-mortem report was released.

"At first, we thought the investigation was proceeding properly. It was only after the post-mortem report came out that we realised there were issues that needed further examination," he said.

Praveen Babu pointed out that the previous government had opposed a CBI investigation and had informed the court that the police probe was progressing satisfactorily.

"We had raised several doubts from the beginning, including questions regarding the cause of death. We hope the CBI will conduct a thorough investigation and clear all uncertainties," he added.

A few days ago, Naveen Babu's family met Chief Minister V. D. Satheesan and conveyed their concerns about the investigation. They had requested that the case be handed over to the CBI if the ongoing probe failed to address their concerns. Soon after, the government decided to transfer the case to the central agency. Naveen Babu was found hanging at his official residence in Pallikkunnu on October 15, 2024.

The case is linked to an incident at Naveen Babu's farewell function, where former Kannur District Panchayat President P. P. Divya unexpectedly attended and publicly criticised him in the presence of District Collector Arun K. Vijayan. According to the prosecution, Naveen Babu was deeply distressed by the allegations and later died by suicide. P.P. Divya remains the sole accused in the case.