Inclined to appoint a retired SC Judge to conduct inquiry in Telangana Encounter, Supreme Court

The Supreme Court today said that it intends to appoint a retired Supreme Court Judge to probe the Telangana Encounter of December 6.

The PIL seeking a probe and registration of FIRs in the encounter of four rape accused was taken up for hearing by the bench of CJI SA Bobde along with Justices S Abdul Nazeer and Sanjiv Khanna.

The Court said that it is aware that the Telangana High Court is seized of the matter and the only thing the Apex Court “intends to do” is appoint a retired Supreme Court Judge to inquire into the encounter.

The Court said that this inquiry will be conducted from Delhi and has sought proposals of names of such retired Judges who may conduct the inquiry. The case will now be heard tomorrow.

Recently, two PILs were moved against the Telangana Police Encounter, one by advocates GS Mani and Pradeep Kumar Yadav and the other by advocate ML Sharma. Both PILs have registered an objection to the extra-judicial killing of the four accused in the Telangana rape and murder case in the when the guilt of the accused was yet to be proved.

The petition filed by Mani and Kumar emphasizes that while no one will support persons involved in the gang rape and murder of innocent women, it is unfortunate that the police has taken the law into their own hands and carried out the encounter, “without conducting a proper investigation, collecting evidences, framing charges and without bringing them before the court for punishment.”

The Telangana Encounter case has drawn criticism from various quarters, with the National Human Rights Commission taking cognizance of the same. Furthermore, even the Telangana High Court also intervened to direct that the video of the post mortem of the accused, being conducted at the Government District Hospital, be sent to the Principal District Judge at Mahboobnagar.