Urban Mirror

Urban Mirror Correspondent

New Delhi, July 3: The Supreme Court has issued notice to the Uttar Pradesh government on a PIL alleging that several fake encounters have taken place in the state during the last one year.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices AM Khanwilkar and DY Chandrachud issued a notice to the Uttar Pradesh government on the PIL filed by the NGO, People’s Union for Civil Liberty (PUCL). Lawyer Sanjay Parikh, appearing for PUCL, alleged that as many as 1500 encounters have been carried out in Uttar Pradesh during the last one year, in which a total of 58 persons have been killed. In the NGO has demanded CBI probe in the case so that whole issue could be exposed. The court has sought reply from the UP government within two weeks and the case would be taken up after three weeks. The UP government Home department sources said the government would reply after getting the notice.

Meanwhile in Lucknow the Lok Gathbandhan Party (LGP) today welcomed the decision of the Supreme Court to issue notice to the UP government in connection with UP police encounters cases during the last one year. The apex court has taken up the matter following a PIL which has demanded CBI investigation in at least 1500 police encounter cases in which at least 58 people have been killed.

The spokesman of the party said here on Tuesday that immediately after the installation of the BJP government in UP in 2017 instructions were issued to kill the criminals which led the trigger-happy UP police to go berserk in the name of controlling law and order. The spokesman said that such a large numbers of encounters surely provided justified ground for high level investigation as there are reports that in the name of killing the criminals the UP police have been settling personal scores. The spokesman said even as the law and order situation continues to be bad, the police were given free hand by the chief minister Yogi Adityanath to eliminate the criminals. The spokesman said the Noida incident of shooting of an innocent person in February last was a glaring example how the police were running amok. The spokesman said wrapped up as encounter the police got licence to kill anybody in the state.

The spokesman said the LGP is not opposed to elimination of hardened criminals who have become menace to the society but the way UP police have been behaving is disturbing and dubious. The spokesman said in the past there had been cases when the police helped one criminal group to settle score with the other. Emphasizing that the law should take its course in controlling crimes, the spokesman said the cops could not be given free hand to randomly kill people, as happened in Noida. The spokesman said these encounters have not helped in controlling crime but have led to the police anarchy. The spokesman said the BJP’s slogan of “bullet for bullet” in controlling crime has been badly exposed as people are quite worried about the prevailing situation. Criticizing the government for its utter failure in improving law and order the spokesman said despite tall claims on the issue the ground realities are absolutely different. The spokesman said the BJP had come to power on issues of worst crime situation during SP government, bad governance and massive corruption but it too has failed in making any change in this connection during the last one year. The spokesman said the government will have to review its strategy in crime control.