The Gujarat High Court on Thursday issued show cause notice for contempt proceedings to the Additional Chief Secretary of the State Home Department for delaying transfers of three top police officers, who the court believes could have influenced the Special Investigation Team (SIT) appointed by it to probe the Ishrat Jahan case. The notice is returnable on May 11.
The Division Bench, comprising Justices Jayant Patel and Abhilasha Kumari, issued the show cause while hearing the status report filed by the SIT.
The court had directed the government last year to transfer the Additional Director General of Police, P. P. Pandey, who was heading the State CID (Crime), Superintendent G. L. Singhal, heading the State Anti-Terrorist Squad, and Deputy Superintendent Tarun Barot, who was heading the Special Operations Group, Ahmedabad, all members of the Ahmedabad Crime Branch when Ishrat and three others were killed in the “encounter.” The transfer orders to them were issued only earlier this week and that too after the Bench gave a stern warning to the State government.
‘Bid to hamper probe'
Mr. Justice Patel told Advocate-General Kamal Trivedi that prima facie the State did not comply with the court's order and it would initiate contempt proceedings against the official responsible for it. “There is material on record to suggest that the police officers were not transferred even when the Central Forensic Team and the team from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Delhi, visited the encounter site this Sunday. Prima facie it seems to be an attempt of the State to hamper the investigation,” Justice Patel noted.
The Bench also agreed to relieve SIT chairman Karnail Singh, who has been transferred to Mizoram, and instead directed State cadre IPS officer Satish Verma to lead the investigation. It asked the other State cadre IPS officer, Mohan Jha, to look after the administrative matters relating to the SIT. The court also gave unbridled powers to Mr. Verma to “question anyone and arrest anyone” he felt fit based on the evidence available.
The court had earlier expressed its strong dislike over the rivalry between Mr. Verma and Mr. Jha in investigating the case. While asking the Central government to name an officer higher in rank than Mr. Verma and Mr. Jha, to be appointed SIT chairman in place of Mr. Karnail Singh, the former Delhi Joint Police Commissioner, the court also directed the State government to spare any officer named by Mr. Verma to assist him in the investigation. The officer named by Mr. Verma, however, should not in any way be connected with the Ishrat encounter of June 2004, the court said.
Instead of allowing registration of a second FIR in the case, the court asked the SIT to conduct the probe at this stage based on the first FIR. The court also concurred with Mr. Karnail Singh's earlier submission seeking direction to the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) to provide the SIT with a report it had sought in connection with the case. Mr. Justice Patel told Central government counsel P.S. Champaneri that if the NIA had any difficulty in furnishing the information, it should be reported to the court. The next hearing in the case has been slated for May 12.
Published - April 22, 2011 01:19 am IST
