Badals get High Court clean chit in Kotkapura firing case

Saurabh Malik

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, April 23

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has not only given Punjab’s former CM Parkash Singh Badal a clean chit in the Kotkapura firing case, but also ruled that the conclusion of police firing being unprovoked was against the record. The Bench ruled that IPS officer Kunwar Vijay Partap Singh (who has taken premature retirement) indulged in political manoeuvring and misused his official position.

In his 89-page judgment release today, Justice Rajbir Sehrawat ruled that conversation between a CM with the district administration or the state DGP during disturbed law and order was not sufficient to infer conspiracy to kill or injure anybody through police firing upon the protesters, unless some other material was collected by the investigating officer to establish prior meeting of minds for conspiracy, directly linking the CM to it.

Kotkapura firing: Simple crime probe made to fester, rules HC

“If mere talking by the Chief Minister, or for that matter by a minister, with his DGP or the district administration is taken as criminal conspiracy, any CM can be held criminally liable every day for any wrong-doing resulting from wrong functioning of district officials,” Justice Sehrawat ruled.

The Bench said the fact that the then CM was in touch with the district officials showed he was alive to the situation and to his responsibility. “Otherwise, he would have run the risk of being branded another Nero playing fiddle when Rome was burning.”

No material was collected by Kunwar to even remotely suggest a direct link to any conspiracy, except the call records. After hearing senior advocate RS Cheema for the petitioner-police officers, the Bench ruled the firing was stated to have taken place in the “third stage after a third order was passed by the civil authorities…the protestors are recorded to have chased and attacked the police, including with swords. Therefore, the conclusion that the protesters were sitting peacefully when the police started firing and also the conclusion that firing by the police was unprovoked, is against the record,” the Bench asserted.

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PROBE CONDUCTED IN PERFUNCTORY MANNER

• Report by Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh more in nature of hypothesis based on assumptions rathar than facts
• Even before starting the investigation in (FIR no.192 dated Oct 14, 2015), he declared police firing was totally ‘unprovoked’ and the protesters were ‘peaceful’; he intended to create a narrative in favour of a party
• Public pressure to get alleged erring police officials convicted seems to have hit the fairness of the probe