SAD president Sukhbir Badal met UP CM Yogi Adityanath after the Allahabad High Court commuted the life sentence awarded to 47 UP policemen by a CBI court for extra-judicial killing of 10 Sikh men in UP in 1991, to 7 years of rigorous imprisonment, writes Mudit Mathur
The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court commuted the life sentence to seven years of rigorous imprisonment awarded to 47 UP policemen by a CBI court for extra-judicial killing 10 Sikh men in three fake encounters in Pilibhit district of Uttar Pradesh, in 1991 in the same night of 12 July. The policemen allegedly gunned down the Sikh men in three separate encounters in the thickets falling under three different police station areas— Bilsanda, Niuria and Pooranpur— in Pilibhit. These Sikh youths have gone there on a pilgrimage tour from Gurdaspur (Punjab) including some of them accompanying their wives and parents.
The High Court judgement came as shock to many who believe in rule of law and justice. Soon after the judgement delivered by High Court on 16th December,2022, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) President Sukhbir Singh Badal rushed to Lucknow the very next day along with SAD- Sri Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee (SGPC) delegation and met UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
After the meeting with Yogi Adityanath, Badal tweeted on his handle, “CM @myogiofficealso agreed to look into SAD plea to file appeal in SC against Allahabad high court order overturning life sentence given to 43 cops for killing 10 Sikhs in fake encounters in Pilibhit in 1991. Delegation called for exemplary punishment to killers of innocents.” The lone Sikh Minister in UP cabinet Balwant Singh Aulakh was also present during talks but when “Tehelka” approached him to know further progress of the matter he replied, “I will inform after enquiring from concerned officers.” Later he did not respond.
Setting aside the trial court’s verdict which convicted the policemen of murder and criminal conspiracy, the High Court convicted them of culpable homicide not amounting to murder. “It is not the duty of the police officers to kill the accused merely because he/she is a dreaded criminal. Undoubtedly, the police have to arrest the accused and put them up for a trial,” the bench of Justice Ramesh Sinha and Justice Saroj Yadav held in its 179-page order commuting lifeterm of 43 cops/appellants from Section 302 IPC to Section 304 Part I IPC.
The court convicted the 43 Policemen under Section 304 Part I of the Indian Penal Code and sentenced them to seven years’ rigorous imprisonment along with fine of Rs 10,000, which the High Court considers adequate in the circumstances of the case.
The Court was hearing the appeals moved by 43 appellants/cops challenging the order passed by Special Judge, C.B.I. /Additional District Judge, Lucknow in April 2016 convicting them for life imprisonment under Sections 120-B, 302, 364, 365, 218, 117 IPC. A total of 57 policemen were charge-sheeted in the case, of which 14 are now dead.
“The case of the appellants is that they killed ten terrorist persons as they eliminated them in self-defence because when they saw the terrorists came out from the forest area, then, they challenged them and all of a sudden, the terrorists opened fire and in retaliation and in self-defence, the appellants had opened fire and in that way, ten terrorist persons were killed in the firing…The claim of the appellants that they killed ten terrorist persons in self-defence does not corroborate with the medical evidence,” the Bench observed.
Setting aside the trial court’s verdict which convicted the policemen of murder and criminal conspiracy, the High Court convicted them of culpable homicide not amounting to murder, observing that their case would be covered by Exception 3 to Section 300 of the IPC, the Court held that the appellants, being police officers, exceeded the powers given to them by law, and they caused the death of the deceased by doing an act that they, in good faith, believed to be lawful and necessary for the due discharge of their duty.
The ordeal of police encounters still traumatises
Balwinderjeet Kaur, 51, who hails from Arjanpur village of Gurdaspur Punjab.“I was seven month pregnant and went for bowing our head at the holy Sikh shrines, including Patna Sahib in Bihar, Gurudwara Nanakmatta Sahib in Udham Singh Nagar, Uttarakhand (then in Uttar Pradesh), Hazur Sahib in Nanded, Maharashtra in a hired luxury bus with other Sikh pilgrims from Pilibhit district of UP where we came to visit our relatives. We were returning home after visiting these places when we were intercepted and stopped by U.P. police teams.They checked our bus and targeted all Sikh youths and dragged them down and loaded them in police vehicles and left behind shocking screaming ladies behind,” recalled Kaur who was prime eyewitness to expose police plot before the trial court.
However, the High Court held her testimony doubtful and commuted life term into seven years rigorous imprisonment along with fine of Rs 10,000. The victims’ families are now planning to go in appeal against the judgement before Supreme Court, which they feel is unjustified and inconsistent with law.
