On 29th December, Acharya Kishore Kunal, a former IPS officer of the 1972 batch, Chief of the Bihar State Board of Religious Trust, and founder Secretary of the Mahavir Mandir Trust in Patna, passed away. The 74-year-old Kunal suffered a cardiac arrest in the early hours of Sunday and was immediately taken to a hospital, where he passed away at around 8 AM. His son, Saayan Kunal, and daughter-in-law, Shambhavi Chaudhary, were present at the hospital at the time of his demise. Kunal’s body was later taken to his residence in Patna, where a large number of people gathered to pay their last respects.
Former SSP Kishore Kunal’s life was marked by significant ups and downs. Among the cases that defined his career and haunted Bihar during his tenure was the infamous Bobby Sex Scandal.
Bobby Sex Scandal
On 11th May 1983, two major newspapers in Bihar sent shockwaves across the state with a chilling revelation. Bobby, whose real name was Shwetnisha Trivedi, had died under suspicious circumstances. Bobby was the adopted daughter of a Congress leader and then Vice-Chairperson of the Bihar Legislative Council. Her body was secretly buried before any detailed investigation could be conducted. The news created a storm that shook every nook and corner of Bihar’s political landscape in the coming months. Then SSP of Patna, Kishore Kunal, initiated an investigation into her death days after the incident. What unfolded during the investigation was a web of sex, power, and crime that exposed the grim side of politics.
Who was Bobby?
Bobby’s real name was Shwetnisha Trivedi. She was the adopted daughter of Congress leader and then Vice-Chairperson of the Bihar Legislative Council, Rajeshwari Saroj Das. Bobby was known for her unparalleled beauty. Because of her charm, she was lovingly given the name “Bobby” by her admirers, inspired by Raj Kapoor’s film heroine. Due to her connection with Das, she secured a job as a telephone operator in the Legislative Assembly Secretariat. Despite her humble job, her charm captivated the elites of Bihar’s political arena. Several leaders were so flattered by her that they would hand over their entire travel allowances to her as gifts.
The scandal begins – The death and its aftermath
On 8th May 1983, Bobby died, but the news of her death was suppressed for days. It was only after the news reports on 11th May 1983 that the people of Bihar became aware of the incident. According to her mother, she fell ill after consuming medicine, leading to hospitalisation, and she passed away during treatment. Her body was swiftly buried in a Christian cemetery, as Das was a Christian.
Then SSP of Patna, Kishore Kunal, requested the post-mortem report for her death. Discrepancies in the post-mortem reports raised questions about the circumstances that led to her demise. This prompted the SSP to exhume the body twice for further investigation.
Conflicting reports and the grim revelation
One of the post-mortem reports suggested that she died from excessive bleeding. However, the second report indicated that she had died from a heart attack. Dissatisfied with these findings, SSP Kunal ordered the body to be exhumed a second time. This time, the forensic report shocked everyone: Bobby had died after consuming Malathion, a pesticide. The discovery turned the case into a full-blown murder investigation, and every politician close to Bobby became a suspect.
Political connections – The web tightens
As the investigation progressed, SSP Kunal discovered that Bobby had close ties with several influential leaders, including Congress politician and then Assembly Speaker’s son, Radha Nandan Jha. Testimonies from witnesses revealed that Jha had visited Bobby on the night of her death. Further investigations indicated that Bobby had been blackmailing some leaders with compromising photographs and letters. Such actions could have been the motive behind her murder.
SSP Kunal conducted a sting operation to unearth the truth. He visited Das, Bobby’s adoptive mother, and hid a tape recorder under her chair. Pressed for details about Bobby’s death, Das broke down and confessed that Bobby’s health had deteriorated after taking medicine provided by Jha. She also revealed that a fraudulent doctor had treated Bobby, worsening her condition.
The police now had enough evidence, and SSP Kunal sought to arrest Jha. However, then DIG Narendra Narayan Singh refused to permit the arrest. During that period, Chief Minister Jagannath Mishra had called SSP Kunal to take stock of the case. He was even threatened not to pursue the case as it would “burn his hands”.
The political fallout – Threats and manoeuvres
Immense pressure was placed on the state government as ample evidence against several leaders emerged. Around 44 MLAs and two ministers reportedly threatened Chief Minister Jagannath Mishra, stating that unless the case was transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), they would topple the government. Left with no choice, CM Mishra transferred the case to the CBI on 25th May 1983.
While it was expected that the CBI’s investigation would uncover the truth and punish the culprits, what followed was another mystery. Numerous irregularities plagued the CBI’s investigation. Reportedly, no officer from the agency visited Patna for on-ground inquiries. The CBI concluded that Bobby had committed suicide due to unrequited love. This flimsy conclusion enraged the public, but as the PIL system did not exist at the time, no legal recourse was available unless her family filed a review petition.
The aftermath – Justice denied, questions remain
SSP Kunal relentlessly pursued the case, but it was effectively buried. The dubious report submitted by the CBI claimed that Bobby had ingested a laxative named Sensetable after her love affair failed. Despite the absurdity of this claim—given that the laxative could not cause death—the court accepted the report and closed the case.
There were political consequences, albeit limited. CM Mishra was removed from office three months after the case came to light. Another Congress leader, Chandra Shekhar Singh, succeeded him as Chief Minister. SSP Kunal faced repercussions as well and was transferred. Although political pressure to remove him was significant, his popularity among the public deterred politicians from taking harsher action.
Legacy of the Bobby case
The Bobby Sex Scandal remains one of the darkest political episodes in Bihar’s history. It serves as a testament to how the murky nexus of power, crime, and corruption can suppress even the most high-profile cases, despite public outcry. Kishore Kunal’s memoir, Daman Takshakon Ke, sheds light on the political establishment’s obstacles that prevented Bobby from receiving the justice she deserved.
Nearly 40 years later, Bobby’s death continues to evoke unanswered questions, her story a haunting symbol of the compromises made in the pursuit of power.