No fast track courts to hear honour killing cases in Delhi, HC to consult govt for their formation

A division bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela issued the direction while dealing with a petition filed by Dhanak of Humanity, an NGO working on issues faced by honour killing victims.

Recommended the setting up of designated courts or fast track courts for conducting trials in honour killing cases.

With no designated special court or fast track court in the Capital to try honour killing cases, the Delhi High Court on Thursday directed a non-profit organisation (NGO) and the mother of an alleged victim of honour killing to make a representation to this effect to the administrative side of the HC as well as to the Delhi government.

A division bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela issued the direction while dealing with a petition filed by Dhanak of Humanity, an NGO working on issues faced by honour killing victims, and one Laxmi Singh – mother of 19-year old Himanshu, who allegedly became a victim of honour killing in April.

The petitioners, represented by advocate Utkarsh Singh, were seeking that the directions issued by the Supreme Court in the Shakti Vahini case in 2018 be complied with.

In 2018, the SC had laid down guidelines “to meet the challenges of the agonising effect of honour crime”. A part of the guidelines had proposed setting up of a safe house at each district headquarter of a state, under the supervision of the jurisdictional district magistrate and superintendent of police, to grant protection to couples facing opposition from their families, local community or khaps.

It had also recommended the setting up of designated courts or fast track courts for conducting trials in honour killing cases.

Acknowledging that no such fast track court and designated court exist at the moment in the Capital, the Delhi government, through its standing counsel Sanjay Lao, informed the court that setting up of such courts will have to be first proposed by the HC on the administrative side to the Delhi government, which will then act on it.

Recording that the establishment of designated or fast track courts for conducting trials in honour killing cases will be carried out by the Delhi government in consultation with the HC, the court permitted the petitioners to approach the HC by making a representation on its administrative side through its Registrar General, with a copy also marked to the concerned department of the Delhi government.

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The court permitted the petitioners to make the representation within a fortnight. The bench also recorded that such a representation will be attended to by the court’s administrative side in consultation with the Delhi government and adequate steps taken in this regard.