HC notice to UP Govt on withdrawal of Pilibhit case

Tribune News Service

Lucknow, July 20 

The Allahabad High Court yesterday allowed four weeks to the Uttar Pradesh Government to file a reply on the issue of withdrawal of criminal case against 42 Pilibhit jail staff who killed seven TADA prisoners in the jail and seriously injured another 21.

Hearing the petition filed by Pilibhit custodial torture survivor Sukhveer Singh (45) of Shahjahanpur, Justice VK Birla clubbed the petition of Sukhveer and 11 others with the one filed by Pilibhit-based Harjinder Singh Kahlon.

Sukhveer has demanded the quashing of the impugned order of March 30, 2007, passed by the then Pilibhit Chief Judicial Magistrate in criminal case No 370 of 1995 (State vs Vindhyachal Yadav & others). A request has been made to proceed with the trial of criminal cases... “otherwise the applicants shall suffer irreparable loss and injury”. Eleven other persons have also filed a joint petition.

Applicants Sadrul Singh, Pragati Singh and Mahendra Singh had suffered multiple injuries in the assault that night.

Harbhajan not only received injuries but also lost his brother Jeet Singh at the hands of the jail staff. The widow of the third brother Gurmeet Singh who died due to shock is also an applicant, besides Jagrup Singh, son of Sarvjit Singh who was also killed that night.

The case is about the seven custodial deaths and grievous injury to 21 others lodged in Barrack No. 7 of the Pilibhit jail on the intervening night of November 8-9 in 1994.

After ordering a CB-CID inquiry and filing a chargesheet, all accused were exonerated after CB-CID Public Prosecutor Kaushal Kumar Gangwar withdrew the case on January 26, 2007, under Section 321 of the CrPC. The latest petition seeks reopening of that case.