Raising questions over the Uttar Pradesh police report on the murder and alleged rape of a teenaged girl in a police station, the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court Monday sought more details on the case from the state government by July 8, a lawyer said.
While hearing a petition seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the killing of the 14-year-old girl in Lakhimpur Kheri district, a division bench of the court said it was not at all satisfied with police investigations and their report in the case.
The police report submitted before the court blamed constable Atiq Ahmad for the minor girl’s death. It, however, ruled out that the girl was raped – an allegation made by the victim’s family which is demanding a CBI inquiry into the case.
“As the court was not satisfied with the police report, it asked the state government why the case should not be handed over to the CBI. The court has fixed July 8 as the next date of hearing,” Prince Lenin, counsel for an NGO which moved the petition seeking a CBI probe into the case, told reporters here.
The body of the 14-year-old girl was found hanging from a tree June 10 inside the Nighasan police station premises in Lakhimpur Kheri, around 200 km from Lucknow.
The death was initially dismissed by police as suicide but a second autopsy confirmed the girl was strangled.
“The court made strong observations over the differences in autopsy reports and wondered whether an impartial inquiry had been conducted by police in the case,” added Lenin.
In a press conference held here Sunday, Cabinet Secretary Shashank Shekhar Singh said the constable killed the girl after she raised an alarm, resisting a rape bid.
“Atiq Ahmad has also confessed his crime,” he said.
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Court questions Uttar Pradesh on police station death…
Custodial deaths which are being reported regularily,are increasing day by day, followed by investigations by senior officials and their reports,leading to the suspension, transfer or dismissal of the erring officials. Long ago Justice krishna Iyer in one of his reported judgement has observed ” Today if the freedom of one forlorn person falls to the police tomorrow the freedom of many may fall elsewhere with none to whimper unless the court invigilates and polices the police before it is too late”. Despite the above observation and many directions, no concrete action is taken by the Governments to avoid custodial deaths, harassments etc, in the police stations. Hence it is a hightime now, that all the police stations falling within the jurisdiction of the concerned Magistrates should be provided with a court officer/clerk who must record all the complaints and proceedings and report the latches on the part of the police officials to the concerned magistrate regularily. At least in this way, law and order can be maintained in the police stations and all unlawful and untoward incidents can be prevented.
Wasim Ahmed Khan
Advocate Hyderabad.