By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,
Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh High Court has disposed the petition in Mecca Masjid police firing case advising the petitioner, who was demanding registration of murder case against police officers, to approach the Supreme Court as similar litigation is lying under appeal from the state Government.
Bench of Chief justice Kalyan Jyoti Sengupta and Justice Sanjay Kumar giving order in writ petition no. 15429/2007 stated that similar matter has been adjudicated by the larger bench of high court.
The bench was referring to the Feb 6, 2009 order of large bench of the high court which made mandatory for the police to register a first information report (FIR) against police officers after every encounter death. It was a legal victory for petitioner Andhra Pradesh Civil Liberties Committee as the onus to prove encounter as genuine was shifted upon the police.
But in March 4, 2009 Supreme Court had stayed the judgment after an appeal from Andhra Pradesh police officers association, the matter is still pending in the apex court.
Counsel for the State Government also raised the same appeal pending before the apex court. In these circumstances High Court asked petitioner to approach the Supreme Court as the matter is sub judice before it.
On May 18, 2007 a bomb exploded inside historic Mecca Masjid during Friday prayer killing nine persons on the spot, another five persons were killed by police bullets which has remained biggest point of contention in the handling of the situation that fateful day by Hyderabad police.
The petitioner Lateef Mohd Khan, General Secretary of Civil Liberties Monitoring Committee (CLMC) had filed this petition two months after the incident basing upon the fact finding report of team of human rights organizations which found police guilty of using excessive force against unarmed protestors.
Mr. Khan, in his petition, has urged the court to prosecute list of 14 police officers under section 302 of IPC and to direct state government for investigation in the firing incident trough CBI.
To quell the ire of Muslims, State Government formed a single man commission of Justice Bhaskar Rao which probed into the police firing incident. The commission submitted its report in October 2010 and reportedly exonerated police officers from any wrong doing. However, the report and its recommendations have never been made public by the state government.
Advocate of the petitioner, Suresh Kumar who was also part of APCLC team which won the 2009 historic judgment, speaking with TCN said that the High Court has left them with two options either to sit on petition till the judgment on appeal from Supreme Court arrives or become the part of appeal litigation in the Apex court. “We decided that rather to put the case in cold storage we should take the matter to Supreme Court so the High court has permitted us to take the matter further,” he said.
Advocate Suresh said that they will be filing application in the Supreme Court soon. He said this case has been dragged on for almost six years with police officers failing to respond on court notices and state governemnt delaying tactics in the court. Advocate Suresh said they are planning to club mecca masjid police firing case with APCLC case in the Supreme Court and hopes with possible Apex Court interference matter could be expedited soon.