In Delhi, cops nab 4 men for murder — parade them in locality

followed by patrol vehicles, including a police van, as well as mediapersons and locals.

The four men — Rajnish (18), Amit Kumar (18), Roshan Singh (19) and Pramod (18) — had allegedly killed their friend, Abhishek Singh (20), over Rs 300 on Sunday evening. The victim’s uncle Narender told police that the accused were chasing Singh with knives and allegedly stabbed him in the chest and abdomen before escaping. The men were arrested from Noida on Monday and brought to Delhi later.

Officers, who did not want to be named, said the accused were being taken to the crime scene as part of the investigation. It was also to display “good policing” as well as to show the efforts of the police team who arrested the accused in less than 12 hours, they added.

However, DCP (Central) Sanjay Sain denied that the accused were paraded. “We were only taking them to the spot to recreate the crime scene and recover the murder weapons. Our teams recovered blood-stained clothes, the Rs 300 cash involved and the weapons. They were taken on foot as the lanes were narrow.”

A senior police officer from the Delhi Police HQ added, “It is not allowed to publicly name and shame the accused involved in any case. The police team was only doing their job.”

Advocate Sunil Gupta, who has worked with the Delhi Prisons department, said, “The accused can’t be produced in public till the test identification parade is done. It is also a violation of criminal and human rights… to be shamed in public. The NHRC must take cognizance of this. The accused can approach the court against the police.”

A senior police officer agreed, saying that such acts can weaken the police’s case. “The accused can use this in court. Even if the accused were masked, they were paraded for no reason in public. Anybody could have come and attacked the men.”

Police had arrested Pramod from the Delhi-Lucknow highway while the others were caught in Noida. They were planning to go to Gorakhpur.

DCP Sain had earlier said the accused confessed to committing the crime after they lost a card game. They then fought over Rs 300 that the victim had loaned to them and wanted back. “They hit each other. To teach Singh a lesson, the accused ganged up and stabbed him in Sangam Colony,” said the DCP.