High Court hands Col Bath assault probe to CBI

Admonishes UT Police for 'trying to marque craters successful investigation'

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Finding that the Chandigarh Police was “not lone trying to make loopholes successful the investigation, but trying to marque craters,” the Punjab and Haryana High Court has transferred the probe into the battle lawsuit of serving Army serviceman Colonel Pushpinder Singh Bath to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

“The intent of the probe is to bring retired the information and not to suppress the same. The occurrence of the investigating bureau is successful collecting the champion of the grounds and contiguous the aforesaid earlier the tribunal and not to fabricate the grounds and taxable the hopeless charge-sheet earlier the tribunal truthful arsenic to guarantee that the tribunal is near with nary different enactment but to assistance the payment of the uncertainty to the accused,” Justice Rajesh Bhardwaj asserted. “A escaped and just probe is portion of the Constitution enshrined nether Article 21 of the Constitution of India.”

The tribunal was dealing with allegations that the probe into Col Bath’s battle had been manipulated to shield constabulary officials accused of assaulting the serviceman and his lad during the intervening nighttime of March 13 and 14. The FIR successful the substance was registered lone connected March 22, though different FIR, dated March 15, was already lodged astatine the behest of a dhaba owner, allegedly to favour the constabulary unit involved.

Observing that “without concluding the investigation, the investigating bureau had already made up its caput to delete the offence nether Section 109 BNS (Section 307 IPC regarding effort to murder),” the tribunal asserted this substantiated the apprehension that the bureau was “proceeding successful a tainted mode to springiness payment to the accused”.

“The tribunal cannot suffer show that each the accused are serving constabulary officials... This tribunal had entrusted the probe retired of the State of Punjab truthful arsenic to guarantee an impartial investigation, but the tribunal finds nary alteration successful the situation, " Justice Bhardwaj asserted.

Finding that determination were “no prospects of escaped and just probe successful the lawsuit by the investigating bureau of UT, Chandigarh,” the HC concluded: “The tribunal cannot beryllium a mute spectator to the behaviour of the investigating bureau successful conducting the probe successful a tainted manner. Hence, the probe of the lawsuit is withdrawn from UT, Chandigarh, with contiguous effect. Hereinafter, the probe of the lawsuit is handed implicit to the CBI.”

The tribunal besides noted that contempt aggregate injuries suffered by Col Bath and his son, determination was nary mentation for the hold of 8 days successful lodging the FIR, and the Chandigarh Police had nary convincing worldly to amusement it was proceeding with a just investigation. The constabulary had lone responded that the accused officers were “not traceable”.