Probe soldier’s death as murder,not suicide: HC

The directions were passed by Justice Ritu Bahri on a petition filed by Sarabjit Kaur,widow of Naik Suleman,seeking independent investigation into his mysterious death.

While the family members claimed it was a case of murder,a court of inquiry had given a finding that Suleman had committed suicide. Interestingly,the medical reports had clearly stated that Suleman’s death was not a case of suicide. Advocate Naresh Ghai,counsel for the petitioner,had sought independent inquiry into the ‘homicide’.

It was around 11 am on August 13,2007,that Naik Suleman’s family received a call that he was dead. Attached to 16 Corps battle school in Doda,he was just 31 at the time of his death. The family was told he had committed suicide and had received two bullets — one in the abdomen and the other in the mandible region.

Ghai had averred that “it was not possible to believe a person after firing a high velocity bullet in his neck with a powerful 5.56 mm automatic INSAS rifle was capable of firing another straight bullet shot with a heavy rifle weighing about 5 kg”. On December 21,2007,a superintendent of Punjab Police had submitted a report to the senior superintendent of police that it was a case of homicide and not suicide. On January 10,2008,the letter was forwarded to the director-general of police.

Subsequently,on January 18,2008,Punjab DGP sent a communication to the DGP for the Jammu region for the registration of a case on charges of murder,under Section 302 of the IPC.

Justice Ritu Bahri remarked that the staff court of inquiry examined all the witnesses and concluded that the death was due to suicide.

“The report dated December 21,2007,of the superintendent of police (detective) Roopnagar is very detailed and the opinion of the board of the doctors is clear that this was a case of homicide as against suicide. A direction is being given to the DGP to register an FIR under Section 302 of the IPC”,reads the order.