SC seeks reply from UP govt on plea demanding probe into encounter killings

The petitioner stated that according to facts available in the public domain “over 1100 encounters have taken place in the past year, wherein 49 people were killed and 370 were injured”.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. (Express photo/File)

The Supreme Court Monday sought a reply within two weeks from the Uttar Pradesh government on a public interest litigation (PIL) seeking a probe into encounter killings by the state police.

The bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, hearing a petition filed by People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), asked the state to file its reply within two weeks and agreed to hear the matter again after three weeks.

Appearing for the PUCL, advocate Sanjay Parikh urged the bench to issue notice to the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to seek its view but the court declined to do so.

The petitioner stated that according to facts available in the public domain “over 1100 encounters have taken place in the past year, wherein 49 people were killed and 370 were injured” and that “according to the figures given by the State of UP to the NHRC, in the encounters, 45 persons have died between 01.01.2017-31.03.2018”.

The petitioner submitted that every such encounter is required to be investigated on the basis of an FIR, followed by a magisterial inquiry and a criminal trial thereafter in accordance with law.

“The impunity with which police encounters have been taking place is endorsed by the state government, which is clear from statements made by the Chief Minister on several occasions,” the PUCL said.

Ananthakrishnan G

Ananthakrishnan G. is a Senior Assistant Editor with The Indian Express. He has been in the field for over 23 years, kicking off his journalism career as a freelancer in the late nineties with bylines in The Hindu. A graduate in law, he practised in the District judiciary in Kerala for about two years before switching to journalism. His first permanent assignment was with The Press Trust of India in Delhi where he was assigned to cover the lower courts and various commissions of inquiry. He reported from the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court of India during his first stint with The Indian Express in 2005-2006. Currently, in his second stint with The Indian Express, he reports from the Supreme Court and writes on topics related to law and the administration of justice. Legal reporting is his forte though he has extensive experience in political and community reporting too, having spent a decade as Kerala state correspondent, The Times of India and The Telegraph. He is a stickler for facts and has several impactful stories to his credit. ... Read More

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