IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA
AT
CHANDIGARH
CRWP
No.382 of 2016 (O&M) Date
of decision: 9th May, 2016
Tahir
Hasan.......................................... Petitioner
Versus
State
of Haryana and others .......................Respondents
CORAM: HON’BLE MR. JUSTICE FATEH DEEP SINGH
Present: Mr. Gurnam
Singh, Advocate for the
petitioner.
Mr. Deepak Sabharwal,
Addl. Advocate General, Haryana for respondents No.1 to 3.
None for respondents
No.4 to 6.
Mr. Sumeet Goel,
Advocate for the CBI.
FATEH DEEP SINGH, J. CRM-W
Nos.140-41 of 2016 Notice of the applications given.
Heard.
The applicants are dispensed with from filing certified copies
of documents (Annexures P4 to P7).Keeping in view as to what has been pleaded
and canvassed in CRM-W No.141 of 2016 and it is subsequent to the orders dated
18.03.2016 of this Court which too is highlighted in the application, it was on
02.04.2016 the Kurukshetra Police had called
the petitioner and shown him the dead-body which has been
identified to be of deceased Mustain son of the petitioner regarding which
theapplicants have placed on record photographs of the dead-body(Annexures
P4-P7) to assist the Court in judicious adjudication of thematter. Since these
are vital pieces of evidence for unraveling the truthand would greatly assist
the Court and are thus allowed to be placedon record.
Both the applications stand allowed and the documents(Annexure
P4-P7) are allowed to be taken on record. CRWP No.382 of 2016
At this juncture, State has not placed on record their stand in
this matter by way of reply/rejoinder to the averments in CRM-W No.141 of 2016.
Heard.
It is consequent upon orders of this Court dated 18.03.2016 as
is highlighted in the submissions by the counsel for the petitioner, it was
subsequent on 02.04.2016 the official respondents have intimated the
petitioner’s family of the recovery of a dead-body. It was on the asking of the
police who got the same identified from the family members, is in itself
reflective of the subsequent turn of events and how on the intervention of this
Court has propelled the police in invariably admitting the murder and
initiation of these subsequent steps. Apparently a contrivance to save the
police and the higher functionaries of the local administration from the
ignominy of this murder whereby a fresh FIR bearing No.157 dated 02.04.2016 has
been registered under Sections 302/34 IPC against a few individuals certainly
speaks volumes of the apathy of the police in coming to the aid and rescue of
an ordinary citizen of this country, a victim of brutality propagated with the
connivance of the police.
Thus the conduct of the official respondents to this turn of events
reinforces the opinion of this Court that there has been unleashing of terror
by certain vigilante groups so claiming to be repository of social order with
the backing of local administration whereby they are not only circumventing the
law but putting the State into anarchy and thus obliterating the rule of law.
Since the State police and the administration has woken-up by this shock of
judicial order from their self & intentionally imposed slumber, is all the
more striking at the conscience of the Court, that the initial stand of the State
was a pure facade deceptively set-up to sweep under the carpet these
wrongdoings.
It would not be out of place to refer here that the State police
has lost its credibility even by its self-contradictory stand that it had
earlier set-up in the Murthal incidents whereby this Court has taken a suo-motu
cognizance of such state of treatment meted out to helpless women by such goons
under political patronage under the very nose of the high ranking officials of
the State, which is another feature which impels this Court to hold that since
the authorities have failed to perform their duties and there is every
likelihood that even now they may not come up with the truth. There are still
reasons that the petitioner may not be meted out full justice and mere
registration of an FIR of murder against a few individuals is not a guarantee
that subsequent investigations would go in pursuit of unraveling the truth and
ultimate justice.
It needs to be reiterated that the top officers of the police and
the administration cannot hide their deeds and acts under the garb of
ignorance. A public officer deputed to govern needs to ensure not only good
governance but also must uphold the constitutional rights of a citizen more
zealously. Their silence and inaction is in itself reflective of their
culpability may be active or passive which needs to be denounced out rightly.
Article 226 of the Constitution of India is a great and salutary
safeguard for preservation of fundamental rights of the citizens. Thus where
the executive action is totally arbitrary or there is dereliction of duty by
the authorities it is under this writ jurisdiction the High Court is supposed
to step in. Article 21 provides that “No person shall be deprived of his life
or personal liberty except according to the procedure established by law” which
is reminiscent of the clause of Magna Carta. Thus, it flows from it that
neither the State nor its agents can deprive an individual of his life in such
an arbitrary and totally barbaric manner. Thus it casts upon the High Court an onerous
duty to ensure that no one is deprived of his life and personal liberty in the
manner not provided by law. Thus, by the exercise of such an obligation this
Court as has already expressed its views in the previous orders dated
18.03.2016 which are reiterated here as well to prevent repetition.
Thus, holding that to instill confidence in the people in the
law of the land and the absolute reticence shown by the local administration
and this Court being fully satisfied that there is every likelihood that local
police to save its officers and on account of political overtones is not likely
to investigate this ugly incident in its entirety. Thus, it would meet the ends
of justice if investigations are handed over to an outside and independent
agency as greater threat exists as to denial of justice to the family of the
victim.
Thus, in the totality of what has been already detailed in the
previous orders, the instant writ petition is allowed. The matter regarding
this incident pertaining to the circumstances leading to disappearance and
subsequent recovery of dead-body is ordered to be handed over to the Central
Bureau of Investigation. The State police is directed to hand over the entire
records of this case pertaining to both the FIRs so registered to the CBI
within ten days from today and the CBI would be at liberty to investigate both
these FIRs.
The Director General of Police, Haryana is directed to ensure that
the CBI is provided with requisite infrastructural support so desired by the
new Investigating Agency which is at liberty to register a fresh FIR if so
necessitated and to look into the roles of local police including
Superintendent of Police as well as District Magistrate and their subordinates
including higher officials who are responsible for
administration of the district of Kurukshetra and who dubiously
have looked the other way round throughout. To ensure fair investigation and to
ward-off any such apprehension as has been expressed by learned counsel for the
petitioner, the State is directed to immediately transfer Superintendent of
Police, Kurukshetra; District Magistrate, Kurukshetra; Deputy Superintendent of
Police, Kurukshetra and Station House Officer, Police Station Shahbad, District
Kurukshetra to a far-off place at inconsequential posting within 15 days of
this order and ensure that they are not given postings where they could wield influence
in the investigations and intimidate the witnesses and shall not be posted in
this area till the conclusion of the trial. In case the investigating agency of
CBI feels that it is essential, they may after adopting due recourse and
process of law and after obtaining appropriate sanction and permission in the
light of wishes of the family of the deceased, if so otherwise necessitated,
exhume the dead-body and get the post-mortem conducted afresh.
It would be in the fitness of things that with a view to stop such
incidents in future, necessary directions are issued to the DGP, Haryana as
well as Chief Secretary, Haryana to ensure that such so called vigilante groups
working under the garb of ‘Gau Raksha Dal’ are not allowed to take the law in
their own hands and to initiate immediately appropriate steps in this
direction. They are further directed to ensure protection of life and personal
liberty of the family of the petitioner during the investigations and trial as
well as to initiate appropriate administrative action immediately against all
those found responsible and to intimate this Court of the action so taken.
The petition is disposed off on those terms. Compliance report
of this order be sent to this Court. A copy of this order, duly attested by the
Reader of this Court, be handed over to the CBI through their Standing Counsel,
Mr.Sumeet Goel, Advocate.
(FATEH DEEP SINGH) JUDGE May 9, 2016
Rps Whether to be referred
to the reporters or not? Yes
