BUNTY MAHAJAN
JAMMU, APRIL 8: Principal Sessions Judge, Kishtwar, Y P Kotwal, on Thursday ordered a judicial inquiry into the death of an under-trial in police custody at Chatroo Police Station, saying that the power to conduct inquiry in such cases has been taken away from the Executive Magistrate with effect from June 23, 2006, following the addition of Section 176 (1-A) in the Criminal Procedure Code.
Directing the Chief Judicial Magistrate on Thursday to conduct inquiry into the matter preferably within two weeks, he held that “on completion of the inquiry, the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kishtwar, shall draw a report and shall keep the statements of witnesses, documents collected and the report drawn by him as part of the case record’’. The CJM shall furnish copies of these documents to the investigating officer.
The judge also made it clear that the inquiry held by CJM shall not be a bar to the police to investigate simultaneously, adding that the investigating officer without being hindered by the CJM’s inquiry shall conduct investigations thoroughly and submit a final report to the jurisdictional magistrate under provisions of Section 173 of CrPC.
The order came in an application filed before Principal Sessions Judge by Jammu and Kashmir District Bar Association, Kishtwar, through its general secretary Amees Mir advocate seeking court’s directions to the CJM for conducting an inquiry into the death of an under trial , Abdul Latief of Chatroo, in police custody under mysterious circumstances on March 6 last.
According to police, Mohammad Latief was apprehended by a police patrol party led by Assistant Sub Inspector Mohammad Ayub Khan at Chatroo’s Parna Chingam area while carrying a white coloured gunny bag on his shoulder on the morning of February 26 last. On checking, the police party found 8-9 kgs of crushed leaves of cannabis inside the bag.
Accordingly a case under NDPS Act was registered at Chatroo Police Station and inquiry entrusted to Probationary Sub Inspector (PSI) Rohit Kumar who took the naib tehsildar with him to the spot and weighed the seized narcotics which came to be 8 kgs and 900 grams.
On February 28 this year, Principal Sessions Judge had remanded the accused to eight days police custody. However, on March 6 evening, the latter allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself with the border of a blanket from a window of his lock-up room.
While the DySP DAR initiated inquest proceedings under Section 174 CrPC, the District Magistrate order SDM Marwah to conduct magisterial inquiry into the cause of death of the deceased.