Ananya Lohia , Patna - The Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to entertain a petition seeking a CBI investigation into the alleged encounter killing of Bharat Bhushan Tiwari in Bihar’s Bhojpur district and advised the petitioner to approach the Patna High Court instead.

A Bench of Justices M.M. Sundresh and Sheel Nagu said the High Court was better placed to monitor the matter and granted liberty to the petitioner to seek appropriate relief there. Advocate Vishal Tiwari, appearing in person, argued that the case involved a violation of fundamental rights and alleged that the safeguards laid down by the Supreme Court for investigating police encounter deaths were not followed.

He sought an independent probe and the formation of an expert committee headed by a former Supreme Court judge. The plea questioned the police version of the June 17 encounter, with Bharat Bhushan Tiwari’s family alleging that he had surrendered and discarded his weapon before being shot. The Bihar government has already constituted a judicial commission headed by Justice Vinod Kumar Sinha of the Patna High Court to investigate the incident.

It has also suspended several police personnel and registered an FIR against five policemen in connection with the case. The encounter sparked controversy across the state, with political leaders and local residents alleging that the killing was staged, prompting demands for an independent inquiry.