Don’t dodge, spell out stand on Prakash report: HC to Haryana

Saurabh Malik

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, July 23

The Division Bench of Justice SS Saron and Justice Shekher Kumar Dhawan today asked the Haryana Government to make its stand clear on the Prakash Singh panel report regarding the role of government officials during the Jat stir in February. 

“Those responsible for the mayhem are liable to be proceeded against. Why are you shielding them? Political compulsions?” the Punjab and Haryana High Court Bench asked the state counsel as the suo motu or “court on its own motion” case came up for resumed hearing this morning.

The second volume of the Prakash Singh committee report on Intelligence and related issues was submitted to the court. The Bench said if the state government was to blame for the failure to act during the Jat agitation, its post-stir conduct was equally deplorable — for having failed to build an image of effectual governance. It hinted at a probe by another agency and asked the state counsel to make a statement on the  inability to handle the investigation.

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Not having procured from the High Court registry the reports submitted by magistrates on the police investigations into the FIRs, the counsel cut a sorry figure. The Bench, on the previous date of hearing, had adjourned the case for today after Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta had sought time to respond to the reports. Mehta’s absence today invited the court’s disapproval.

  The Bench said the magistrates had forgone their vacation to prepare the reports, but the Advocate General’s office had not cared to have a look at these. “You are just buying time and doing nothing… We are shocked at you…. You want the Haryana Police to play a band to call the accused? The Advocate General’s office and the government are in a slumber. What has prevented the AG office...? What is the difficulty…? Should we transfer the investigations? If it goes to the CBI, I fear for the Haryana Police,” the Bench observed.

Justice Saron asserted: “You want to give the matter a quiet burial. We will not permit it. What are you up to? We cannot tolerate when the AG office sleeps… We have to monitor the AG office, the DGP office and the Home Department.”

Amicus curiae (friend of the court) Anupam Gupta said the reports suggested complete inaction on the part of the police. Except for 22 cases, concrete steps had not been taken in 1,199. Rather, strictures had been passed against the investigating agency.