The Bengaluru police have constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the death of CJ Roy, founder and chairman of the Confident Group, who was found dead at his office premises in the city on January 30. An Unnatural Death Report (UDR) has been registered at Ashok Nagar police station in connection with the incident.
In a press note issued on Saturday, January 31, Bengaluru Police Commissioner Seemanth Kumar Singh said the decision to form an SIT was taken to ensure a “comprehensive and meticulous investigation” into Roy’s death. The case has been transferred to the SIT with immediate effect.
The SIT will function under the overall supervision of Joint Commissioner of Police (West Zone) C Vamshi Krishna. Deputy Commissioner of Police (South Division) Lokesh Jagalasar has been appointed the chief investigating officer. Other members of the team include Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central Division) Akshay Hake, Assistant Commissioner of Police (Halasuru Gate Sub-Division) Sudhir, ACP of the Central Crime Records Bureau Ramachandra, and Ashok Nagar police inspector Ravi KB. The team has also been authorised to induct additional officers and resources as required for the investigation.
According to the police, Roy was found with a gunshot injury at his office on Langford Road on Friday afternoon while an Income Tax raid was underway. He was initially rushed to a nearby private hospital and later shifted to Narayana Hospital at HSR Layout for further treatment, where he was declared dead. Police said Roy had arrived at his office earlier in the day while the searches were still in progress.
“The income tax team was searching the premises for the last two to three days. We are not aware of all the details yet. A team from Kerala had come. Police are in touch with the family members, who are not in India at present. They are expected to arrive today,” the Commissioner told reporters.
Roy owned a licensed firearm, his brother, CJ Babu, told a Malayalam television channel. Babu also alleged that Income Tax officials had been troubling Roy and that the searches had continued for three days.
Confident Group is a major real estate developer with operations across several southern states, including Karnataka and Kerala, and has its headquarters in Dubai. Confident Projects (India) Pvt Ltd has been involved in multiple tax disputes with the Income Tax Department before the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal and the Karnataka High Court over assessment-related issues.
A native of Kochi, Roy was also associated with the Malayalam film industry and had produced films, including Mohanlal-starrer Casanova (2012). The Confident Group was the title sponsor of several seasons of Bigg Boss Malayalam, hosted by Mohanlal.
Roy’s death during the Income Tax action has triggered sharp political reactions in Karnataka, with several ministers alleging harassment by central agencies. Karnataka IT and BT Minister Priyank Kharge accused the Union government of misusing agencies such as the Income Tax Department, Enforcement Directorate and GST authorities. “This is nothing but harassment by Income Tax and Enforcement Directorate officials, and it is happening across the country,” Priyank said, adding that small and medium businesses and individuals were being subjected to undue pressure.
Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar said preliminary information suggested that Roy died after being questioned by Income Tax officials. “When they were asking him a lot of questions, he is said to have asked for five minutes of time, gone inside, and did this,” Shivakumar said. “We will do a high-level investigation and bring out the truth. This shouldn’t have happened. He was a good businessman.”