SC to take up PILs on H'bad probe tomorrow

Preserve rape accused bodies: HC

Telangana High Court has directed the state government not to dispose of the bodies of the four accused, shot dead in the encounter till Friday

It wanted to know if the police followed the Supreme Court guidelines on encounters and directed the government to provide evidence of the same

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, December 9

The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to take up two PILs seeking an SIT probe into the killing of four men accused of raping and murdering a veterinarian in Hyderabad by Telangana Police in an alleged fake encounter.

A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India SA Bobde said it would hear the PILs on Wednesday after one of the petitioners – advocate GS Mani mentioned it for urgent hearing. The second PIL is by advocate ML Sharma. Both have demanded registration of an FIR against the erring cops and an SIT probe monitored by former top court judges.

CJI Bobde had on Saturday disapproved of the encounter and sought to underline the distinction between justice and revenge.

The Telangana High Court has already taken cognisance of the encounter. The National Human Rights Commission too has ordered an inquiry.

The petitioners have made the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, Chief Secretary and Director General of Police of Telangana, Commissioner of Cyberabad Police as respondents. They demanded that the police officials involved in the encounter killing should be probed by the CBI or an SIT.

They submitted that an independent probe agency must be directed to act in accordance with the 16 guidelines laid down by the top court in PUCL v State of Maharashtra for fake encounter cases.

On November 27, the veterinarian was raped around midnight on near Outer Ring Road at Shamshabad on the outskirts of Hyderabad. They later carried the body to Chatanpally near Shadnagar town and set her afire.

Police arrested lorry drivers Mohammed Pasha alias Arif (26), Chintakunta Chennakeshavulu and lorry cleaners Jollu Shiva and Jollu Naveen (all aged 20) two days after the incident.

The police claimed the accused attacked policemen when taken to Chatanpally to recover the victim’s mobile phone and reconstruct the crime scene. Two of the accused allegedly snatched weapons from policemen and opened fire. All four were killed after police returned the fire.