BEENU RAWAT Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The petitioners claim to be young volunteers of 'Aam Aadmi Party' (AAP) engaged in selfless work for the improvement of democratic institutions of this country and also fight for justice. They have approached this Court under Article 32 of the Constitution of India seeking the following reliefs:

(2.) The incident of 19.06.2013 at Gokal Puri Police Station in Delhi which is mentioned in prayer no. (a) noted above, occurred in course of a protest by the volunteers of (AAP) at Gokal Puri Police Station since morning hours. The protestors wanted registration of an FIR in respect of an alleged occurrence of rape of a poor woman by two persons in Bhagirathi Vihar. Allegedly the police was reluctant to register the FIR and hence a number of volunteers including the petitioners joined the protest. The FIR was ultimately registered around 2.30 p.m. and the protestors were informed of the same. A demand was made for a copy of the FIR. According to respondents the copy could not be given to others because of the nature of the alleged crime which requires that name of the victim be not disclosed. According to petitioners the copy of the FIR was not given even to victim's husband. It is the case of the petitioners that when they were planning to wind up the protest, they were suddenly rounded up by a large number of policemen and mercilessly beaten by them. The manner of chase and beating by lathi gave an impression to the petitioners that the police action was not to disperse the petitioners but to teach them a lesson. As per allegations, the police also used abusive language and told the protestors that they will be taught a lesson so that they do not indulge in such kind of protests in future. Initially, police arrested seventeen volunteers but three of them were let off as they were minor girls. Subsequently, petitioner Nos. 2 and 10 were also taken into custody and allegedly beaten in police custody although they claimed that they had come to the police station later only to enquire about the incident. The nineteen petitioners claim to have sustained serious injuries on head, back, arm and legs. One of them (petitioner no.17) has sustained fracture in lower ulna but he managed to run away.

(3.) According to the case of the petitioners the police had indulged in unlawful use of force and inflicted injuries before arrest and also during custody, leading to injuries to the petitioners; the arrest was unlawful which is sought to be justified by fabricated evidence for rioting etc.; by breaking window glasses and tearing of some papers in the police station. According to the petitioners a serious case was attempted to be made out through subsequent statement of one ASI of police, Ms. Sushila. There is no such incident mentioned in the FIR bearing no. 251/2013 dated 19.06.2013 registered at P.S. Gokul Puri and even before the learned Metropolitan Magistrate she had alleged that only her scarf (dupatta) was pulled by protestors. The petitioners have claimed that the Commissioner of police, Delhi, has made an incorrect statement that Delhi police has videos of protestors vandalizing the police station. To decide the case it is not necessary for this Court to delve deep into allegations made by the petitioners or those against them by the police which has lodged a criminal case of rioting etc. as noted above. This is because there is no prayer made in this writ petition seeking any kind of intervention in the investigation of police case registered against the petitioners. Even the first prayer made by the petitioners is to order an independent investigation by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) into the incident of 19.06.2013 to find out the truthfulness of allegations of police atrocities and if such allegations are found right then further consequential orders be passed for criminal prosecution as well as disciplinary action against the concerned police officers. Hence, the issue before the Court is a limited one requiring a careful appraisal of relevant facts and circumstances for coming to a conclusion as to whether the petitioners have made out a case for issuing a direction to order an independent investigation into the alleged incident of 19.06.2013 at Gokal Puri Police Station, Delhi or not.