SAHUZAMAN Vs. STATE OF U.P. AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard Sri Rajeev Sawhney, learned counsel for the petitioner and Sri Deepak Mishra, learned counsel for the respondent No. 3/Union of India and learned AGA for the respondent Nos. 1, 2 and 4.

(2.) This habeas corpus writ petition has been filed by the petitioner with a prayer to issue a writ order or direction in the nature of habeas corpus commanding the respondents to set the petitioner -Sahuzaman who is detained in District Jail, Bijnor at liberty forthwith pursuant to the order passed by the District Magistrate, Bijnor, respondent No. 2 vide order dated 01.06.2015 in exercise of power under Sec. 3 of the National Security Act (hereinafter referred to NSA).

(3.) Briefly stated the facts of this case are that while one Abdul Aziz along with his sons Bahazuddin and Riyazuddin boarded, the bus belonging to Dhampur Depot bearing registration No. U.P.20/T -1397 on 24.04.2015 at about 1.40 p.m. for returning from Bijnor to Nagina after attending the date in the Sessions Trial in which his son in law Mujeeb and his other relative were being tried for having allegedly killed his daughter Gulista for nonfulfilment of demands for dowry pending before the Sessions Court, Bijnor, the petitioner had also boarded the same bus at Bijnor. When the bus stopped at Roorkie Bus Stop, two other persons boarded the bus and sat next to the petitioner and when the bus crossed village Roshanpur Pratap on Bijnor Nagina main road at about 2.15 p.m., the petitioner stood up from his seat and walked towards the bus conductor while his other two companions Ravi and Kamendra pulled out their countrymade pistols from their pockets and the petitioner and his accomplices reproached Bahazuddin for having turned down their proposal for compromise in the criminal case which was going on against Mujeeb and started firing indiscriminately with their firearms at Bahazuddin causing his instantaneous death. As a result of the aforesaid incident passengers sitting inside the bus got scared and terrified and hid themselves under their seats and the driver of the vehicle stopped the bus whereupon the petitioner and his other companions got down from the bus brandishing their firearms menacingly and run away. On the basis of the FIR of the incident lodged by Abdul Aziz at P.S. Kotwali Dehat, District Bijnor was registered as case crime No. 59 of 2015, under Ss. 302 and 120B IPC against the petitioner and two unknown persons. As a result of the dare devil manner in which the aforesaid offence was committed by the petitioner along with his accomplices in broad day light in a moving bus packed with passengers, the farmers and labourers working in the nearby fields also got terrified and ran away. The movement of the traffic on Bijnor -Nagina Road was also affected. The passengers sitting inside the bus had also got down from the bus and fled away. It was only after police force of P.S. Kotwali Dehat and of other police stations reached the place of occurrence the farmers and labourers returned to their work in the nearby fields and movement of the traffic was also restored. The petitioner was arrested on 27.04.2015 and in his statement recorded under Sec. 161 Cr.P.C. admitted that he had committed the murder of Bahazuddin at the behest of Mujeeb after receiving a sum of Rs. 40,000/ - from him. Another relevant fact of this case is that the aforesaid incident was committed by the petitioner while he was on bail granted by Hon'ble High Court in the criminal appeal preferred by him before Hon'ble High Court against the judgment and order dated 09.05.2014 passed by Sessions Judge, Bijnor in Sessions Trial arising out of case crime No. 1066 of 2006 under Sec. 302 and 201 IPC by which he was convicted and awarded life sentence under the aforesaid offences for committing the murder of a women and throwing her dead body in a forest. The heinous murder committed by the petitioner and his accomplices during the broad day light in a moving bus packed with passengers was given wide publicity in all local and several national level news papers including Hindustan and Dainik Jagran, as a result whereof the public order was adversely affected.