B.G. VERGHESE Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) These are two connected writ petitions filed under Article 32 of the Constitution.

(2.) In Writ Petition (Crl.) No. 31 of 2007, it is stated that during the years 2003-2006, 21 police encounter killings took place in the Stale of Gujarat. A city-wise list giving the names and some basic informations in regard to the persons said to have been killed in police encounters is given in a tabular form which is enclosed as Annexure P-1 to the writ petition. It is alleged that the so-called police encounters were fake and those persons were killed by the police officials in cold blood.

(3.) A prayer is made to order an inquiry into all the cases of police encounters which, according to the Petitioner, were fake in order to establish the rule of law and to bring out the truth in each case. The other Writ Petition (Crl.) No. 83 of 2007 relates to the killing of Sameer Khan, once again, in a police encounter. The circumstances in which the encounter is said to have taken place are detailed in the writ petition and as in the connected case, it is alleged that this too was an instance of fake encounter in which the aforesaid Sameer Khan was killed by the officers of the Crime Branch of Police in cold blood and in a premeditated manner.