Badlapur case accused encounter: Why no FIR against cops, asks HC, warns of contempt action-OxBig News Network

The Bombay High Court on Friday said it was “appalled” that the police did not register an FIR despite its explicit orders against five policemen in connection with the custodial death of Akshay Shinde, accused in the Badlapur school sexual assault case.

A bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale warned that it would initiate criminal contempt proceedings against the Maharashtra government if its order was not complied with during the day.

There was a “brazen violation” of its last order and it amounted to criminal contempt, the court said.

The HC had in its April 7 order said when a prima facie offence is disclosed, it is mandatory for the investigating agency to register a First Information Report, as laid down by the Supreme Court in the Lalita Kumari judgement.

The court had then ordered the constitution of a special investigation team under the supervision of Lakhmi Gautam, Joint Commissioner of Police, Crime. Gautam shall form the SIT, comprising officers of his choice, and it will be headed by a deputy commissioner of police, it had said.

The HC had also directed the state Criminal Investigation Department (CID) which was probing Shinde’s death to hand over all case documents to Gautam within two days.

On Friday, learning that the order had not been complied with, the bench came down heavily on the government.

“We are appalled. This is a brazen violation of our order. How can the state government not follow the orders passed by the high court? Criminal contempt proceedings will have to be initiated if the case papers are not transferred today itself,” the court said.

The court posted the matter for further hearing later in the afternoon and said if the government did not take steps to implement the April 7 order on Friday itself, it would consider initiating criminal contempt proceedings.

Public prosecutor Hiten Venegaonkar told the court that on April 9, the government filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging the HC order. A hearing on the petition was expected on May 5, he said.

The bench said if the apex court had not stayed its order, the government was bound to comply with it.

“The rule of law has to be followed. You have to comply with the order or else we will be forced and constrained to issue contempt (notice). The SC has not interfered with our order. This amounts to contempt. Do it today,” the bench said.

“FIR ought to have been registered immediately after our order as per the apex court’s Lalita Kumari judgment. It is close to a month and nothing has been done to comply with our order,” it added.

If the government was so aggrieved by its order, it should have sought an urgent hearing in the Supreme Court, the bench said, noting that the high court had rejected the government’s prayer for stay on April 7 itself. “Despite that, the government has been sitting on the files,” it said.

Shinde, accused of sexually assaulting two kindergarten girls at a school in Badlapur in Thane district, was shot dead inside a police van on September 23, 2024, while being taken to Kalyan from Taloja prison for probe in another case.

The escorting police team claimed they shot him in self-defence after he snatched the gun of one of the officials and opened fire. His parents, though, alleged that he was killed in a fake encounter.

An inquiry report by a magistrate indicted the five policemen, stating there was substance in the claim that it was a fake encounter.

The police officials named in the magistrate’s report were Senior Police Inspector Sanjay Shinde of Thane crime branch, Assistant Police Inspector Nilesh More, head constables Abhijeet More and Harish Tawade and police driver Satish Khatal.