SANDEEP KUMAR YADAV Vs. STATE OF U P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) WE have heard Sri S. M. A. Kazmi, learned Advocate General, assisted by learned Government Advocate, Sri V. S. Mishra.

(2.) IN this matter two affidavits dated 10-4-2007 have been filed on behalf of the Secretary, Home Department, State of U. P. and DGP, CBCID, Lucknow. On 12-3-2007, we had passed the following orders : "on the last date, i. e. 20-2-2007, learned Advocate General has given an undertaking that the earlier orders of this Court shall be complied with before 31-3-2007 and in this connection an order has also been passed by the Principal Secretary (Home) directing all the Secretaries, DGP, DG, CBCID to dispose of all the pending matters before 31st March, 2007. To ensure that the said undertaking is complied with, we list this case on 11-4-2007. "

(3.) IN 893 cases of police and non-police public servants arrests were said to be pending because of want of sanctions. Out of these, sanctions of 207 persons were pending for over 10 years, 439 for a period of 5 to 10 years, 133 persons for a period of 3 to 5 years, 112 persons for a period of 1 to 3 years, and 2 persons for a period of less than 1 year. IN the affidavit on behalf of the Secretary (Home) it had only been mentioned in paragraph 2 that due to pendency of 23 cases (which figure had subsequently increased to 33) in various Courts, sanctions were not being given by the State Government on advice from the law department, and the Spl. Secretary (Home) had directed the DGP (Prosecutions) to make efforts to expedite hearings of the said cases in the Courts and a Special Prosecuting Officer had been appointed as a nodal officer for the purpose, so that sanctions could eventually be granted in these matters. A letter dated 22-3-2007 has also been sent by the State Government to the Central Government to grant sanctions in the cases (whose number is unspecified) which fell in its purview. A letter of the same date has also been issued by the Secretary (Home) to various departments in the U. P. Government for grant of sanctions pending at their levels. However to us, these belated letters appear more for the record, and there does not appear to be any sincere effort or even an intention to grant sanctions in the 893 cases pending for sanction (as mentioned in Annexure 1 of the PGP's affidavit) for long periods of time.