DAMODAR YADAV Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) -In all ten petitioners in both the above connected writ petitions, namely, Damodar Yadav, Ravindra Kumar Yadav, Vijai Yadav, Mahendra Prasad, Arvind Kumar Upadhayay, Jagdish Chand Shukla, and Uma Shankar Singh in the former writ petition and Santosh Prasad Diwedi, Suresh Kumar Sonkar and Kripa Shankar Misra in the later have questioned the legality and justifiability of the sanction order dated 24.12.2007, Annexure-VI, accorded by the President of India and issued by Additional Secretary, Government of India, Lok Nayak Bhawan, Khan Market, New Delhi, by which the President has sanctioned petitioner's prosecution in Crime No. 79 of 1996, for offences under Sections 147, 302, 201 and 121, I.P.C. relating to Police Station Gadwar, District Ballia. Also challenged in the two petitions are the non-bailable warrants issued against the petitioners by the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Ballia, in the aforementioned Crime No. vide Annexure-VII to both the petitions.

(2.) A resume of essential facts indicates that S.I. Suresh Kumar Sonkar accompanied by Constable 148 Daya Shankar Yadav of Police Station Gadwar had gone to serve a stay order regarding a school building construction on Deep Chand Sharma who was raising the said construction in village Siria Kula. After service when they were returning then, in village Chogada Chatti, they witnessed Jitendra Bahadur Singh being belaboured by two or three people by kicks and fists. On the complaint made by the injured Jitendra Bahadur Singh, they arrested Devendra (deceased) and brought him to the police station. Jitendra Bahadur Singh accompanied by Sanjai Singh, Ramesh Singh, and Chandra Deo Singh also came to the police station where Jitendra Bahadur Singh lodged a F.I.R. Crime No. 78 of 96 under Sections 323, 194, 504 and 506, I.P.C. showing the incident to have occurred on 16.7.96 at 7 p.m. against Devendra Singh (deceased) Janardan Singh, and Upendra Singh. In the General Diary of registration of said F.I.R. description of the accused (deceased) is mentioned as 37 years, average built, no injury. The arrest G.D. of the deceased is Annexure-1 to the Writ Petition No. 4293 of 2008. Deceased was locked in the lock up. According to Annexure-2, S.I. S. K. Sonkar was going to urinate when he could not see the deceased accused in the lock up and therefore, he gave him a call. No reply alarmed him and therefore, he called Constable Arvind Upadhayay from the office who also called the deceased but in vain and then they got the lock up unlocked and found deceased lying still on his belly near western lock up wall. He was fully naked except an under garment (Ganji) and his red loin cloth rapped around his neck. Arvind Upadhayay S.O. was immediately informed and the S.I. sensed that Devendra accused had committed suicide. Inquest on the dead body of the deceased was performed on 17.7.96 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. by Suresh Singh, S.D.M. Sadar, Ballia and autopsy was performed on the same day at 5 p.m. Which indicate that the deceased had sustained four injuries on his body and the cause of his death was recorded as asphyxia. Vide Annexure-3A it seems that an inquiry into the cause of death of the deceased was ordered by Superintendent of Police Ballia on 18.7.1996 vide letter number S.T. 34/90, memo No. S-15/96. Additional Superintendent of Police, Ballia conducted the inquiry and submitted his report on 19.7.1996 wherein he had mentioned that another inquiry is being conducted by Additional District Magistrate (Finance and Revenue). The said inquiry was ordered by the District Magistrate, Ballia on 18.7.96. The report of Additional District Magistrate (Finance and Revenue) dated 31.3.96, is Annexure-4 to the later writ petition.

(3.) IT was at this stage that Damodar Yadav, Ravindra Kumar Yadav, Vijai Yadav, Mahendra Prasad, Arvind Kumar Upadhayay, Jagdish Chand Shukla and Uma Shankar Singh approached this Court under Article 226 of the Constitution with the prayer to issue a writ order or direction in the nature of certiorari quashing the sanction order as well as N.B.W. against Criminal Misc. Writ Petition No. 3617 of 2008. Three other accused also follow suit by filing Criminal Misc. Writ Petition No. 4293 of 2008. Both these writ petitions are being disposed of now by this common order.