Porbandar deaths: State forms SIT to probe cases against Satish Verma

The investigation would be supervised by Additional Director of General of Police (Law & Order) Shivanand Jha as per the Gujarat High Court (HC) order,sources added. The three “deaths” were reported in the 1990s when Verma was the Porbandar district superintendent of police.

The matter pertains to three deaths at different time in and around Porbandar in the 1990s. One incident concerns the death of Jasu Gagan Shial who was killed by the police team allegedly in self-defence: While the policemen were trying to get hold of him,he was running away. The other two cases which will be investigated concerns the deaths of Aher Ranmal Ram and Aher Narayan Jesti Bandhiya allegedly in the police custody.

Sources said an FIR was going to be lodged soon in this connection. A SIT was being set up by the state government and its members would be announced shortly,sources said.

The three cases were revived in 2012 when Jasu Gagan Shial’s brother Hiralal Shial moved the HC bringing to its notice that a 1998 order of a division bench of HC to investigate into the three “killings” was not complied with by Gujarat CID (Crime). In 1998,the court,while acting on a PIL by Action Committee for Prevention of Police Atrocities,a voluntary organisation,had ordered an investigation into the three deaths. The petitioner organisation had alleged that the three persons were “killed” under the stewardship of Verma.

In April last year,a single-judge bench of HC had ordered an investigation into the three deaths. Verma had unsuccessfully challenged the order in a series of litigation before the Supreme Court and the HC during which the order of investigation was stayed. Recently,the HC had dismissed Verma’s petition and lifted the stay on the investigation,asking the Gujarat Police to submit status report on the investigation by October 21.

Verman,a 1986-batch IPS officer,now holds the rank of Inspector General of Police (IGP). He is currently posted as principal of the Police Training College in Junagadh. As a member of an HC-appointed SIT and later as part of CBI investigation team,Verma have played a key role in establishing that the 2004 Ishrat Jahan encounter was “fake”. In its chargesheet,CBI stated that the “fake” encounter was a joint operation of the Gujarat Police and Intelligence Bureau officials.