SC stays its direction to set up Hindu-Muslim SIT to probe 2023 Akola communal riots

The Supreme Court on Tuesday stayed its direction to set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT) comprising police officers from both Hindu and Muslim communities to probe 2023 Akola communal riots.

Issuing notice on the Maharashtra Government’s petition seeking review of the top court’s September 11 judgment, a Bench of Chief Justice of India BR Gavai, Justice K Vinod Chandran and Justice NV Anjaria posted the matter for further hearing after four weeks.

Earlier, a Bench of Justice Sanjay Kumar and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma had on November 7 delivered a split verdict on the Maharashtra Government’s petition seeking a review of the court’s direction to set up a Hindu-Muslim SIT to probe 2023 Akola communal riots.

Justice Kumar — who had authored the original September 11 verdict, had refused to review it – while Justice Sharma agreed to hear the review plea in open court.

In view of the split verdict, the matter was sent to a larger Bench of three judges for an authoritative pronouncement.

Tuesday’s order came after Solicitor General Tushar Mehta submitted on behalf of the State of Maharashtra that it could choose the members of the SIT and that even the petitioners had not made any prayer regarding such a composition of the probe panel.

Clashes broke out in the Old City area of Akola in May 2023 after a social media post on Prophet Muhammad went viral. One Vilas Mahadevrao Gaikwad was killed and eight people, including the petitioner, were injured. Sharif moved the Bombay High Court through his father against police officers for not filing an FIR but the high court dismissed the petition, suspecting his bona fides.

In its September 11 verdict, the top court said when police officials don uniforms, they must shed their personal and religious predilections and biases. Slamming the Maharashtra Police for dereliction of duty and sheer carelessness in not registering an FIR in the matter, the top court directed the state’s home secretary to constitute an SIT, comprising senior police officers from Hindu and Muslim communities, to register an FIR and probe the matter.

“When members of the police force don their uniforms, they are required to shed their personal predilections and biases, be they religious, racial, casteist or otherwise. They must be true to the call of duty attached to their office and their uniform with absolute and total integrity. Unfortunately, in the case on hand, this did not happen,” read the September 11 judgment.

However, the Maharashtra Government sought review of the September 11 verdict, contending that the direction to constitute an SIT, comprising senior police officers from Hindu and Muslim communities, would impinge upon the principle of institutional secularism and that it amounted to prejudging a communal bias on the part of public servants.