SC appoints ex-judge of Punjab and Haryana HC to monitor SIT probe
New Delhi: Determined on an impartial, fair and just investigation into the Lakhimpur Kheri violence, the Supreme Court Wednesday appointed Justice Rakesh Kumar Jain, former judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, to monitor the probe by Uttar Pradesh SIT which will also get three IPS officers who are not the natives of the state.
Observing that while investigating such offences, justice must not only be done, but also be seen and perceived to be done, a bench headed by Chief Justice N V Ramana ordered reconstitution of the SIT and ordered the induction IPS officers — S B Shiradkar, Padmaja Chauhan and Preetinder Singh.
Shiradkar, an IPS officer of 1993 batch from Maharashtra and presently serving as ADG Intelligence in Uttar Pradesh, will head the SIT, the apex court said in its order.
We thus deem it appropriate to reconstitute the SIT hereinafter to preserve the faith and trust of people in the Criminal Administration of the Justice System. Further, to assure full and complete justice to the victims of crime, we are inclined to order that the ongoing investigation be monitored by a retired High Court Judge, who too may not have his roots in the State of Uttar Pradesh. We, therefore, appoint Justice (Retd.) Rakesh Kumar Jain, a former Judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, to monitor the ongoing investigation so as to ensure transparency, fairness and absolute impartiality in the outcome of the investigation in the Lakhimpur Kheri incident which is to be conducted in a time bound manner, said the bench which also comprised justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli,
Stressing on the need of a fair and just probe, the top court said that given the nascent stage of the investigation, it was reluctant to make any observation on the merits of the case as that would have an impact on the parties involved and influence the prosecuting agency as well as the courts which would ultimately look into the case.
This Court is equally concerned about guaranteeing an impartial, fair, just and thorough investigation into the incident which has resulted in such a tragic loss of lives of protesters as well as some other persons, it said while proposing to appoint the former Judge to monitor the probe and inducting new members in the SIT to conduct the investigation uninfluenced by any consideration.
The UP government consented to the proposal leading to the appointment of the former judge and the reconstitution of the SIT which has been asked to make all efforts to conclude the investigation expeditiously and file the charge sheet.
The State of Uttar Pradesh is directed to provide all perks, facilities, emoluments, secretarial assistance and any other related requirements equivalent to the post of a sitting High Court Judge (minus the pension) to the learned Monitoring Judge. Post the matter for hearing on receipt of a Status Report from the Monitoring Judge, after the charge sheet is filed, the bench ordered.
The top court, which had expressed disapproval on the slow pace, manner and outcome of the investigation conducted so far, took note of the fact that the present SIT predominantly comprised middle level/subordinate level police officers posted in district Lakhimpur Kheri and ordered reconstitution.
It appears to us that in spite of their perceived commitment and sincerity in carrying out the investigation, there may still be a lurking suspicion in respect of the fairness and independence of such an investigation.
"We, therefore, deem it appropriate to direct re-constitution of the SIT infused with directly recruited IPS officers who do not hail from the State of UP though are allocated to UP Cadre. It goes without saying that the SIT shall utilise the latest forensic investigative methods to reach the truth, the order said. The newly constituted SIT shall be free to seek assistance or include local officers for taking the ongoing investigation to its logical conclusion under the continuous monitoring of Justice Jain, it said.
