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In the matter pertaining to the alleged custodial death of a 24-year-old man from Jaunpur, the Allahabad High Court came down heavily upon the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for further delay in the arrest of the accused police officers.

The bench comprising Justice Surya Prakash Kesarwani and Justice Vikas Budhwar held, 

"The facts and circumstances of the case and the manner in which the respondent No.5 (CBI) is proceeding, are compelling us to pass a harsh order and to call for personal presence of respondent No.5 but we still feel it appropriate to give one more opportunity to the respondent No.5 to investigate the case properly."

Therefore, the bench directed the CBI to execute the arrest warrants without any further delay and to take all consequential action as provided in the Code of Criminal Procedure including the provisions of Sections 82 and 83, Cr.P.C.

Court further asked the central agency to produce a status report of the investigation on the next date in a sealed cover. In addition to this, one affidavit on behalf of CBI has also been sought by the High Court clarifying its earlier stand that it used to arrest the accused only after completion of the investigation. 

Earlier, on October 27 upon being enquired as to why the accused police personnel were still absconding, the CBI had apprised the court that it arrests the accused only after completion of an investigation.

Further, rebuking the investigating agency for its lethargic probe, the court observed,

"More than two months have passed(since issuance of arrest warrants) but the accused persons/ policemen against whom charge of murder has been levelled, have not been arrested. The averment made by the respondent No.5 (CBI) that efforts are being made, appears to be merely an eyewash."

Court added that in view of the stand taken by the central agency on the last date of hearing about the arrest of accused only after completion of an investigation, in the latest affidavit filed, nothing was disclosed with respect to the afore-noted stand.

Accordingly, court held, 

"We are constrained to observe that the affidavit is totally unsatisfactory and it indicates that no concrete effort has yet been made by the respondent No.5 to arrest the accused persons, who are policemen."

Court noted that though CBI's affidavit had stated that details of police officials/ suspects/ accused persons had been given and all efforts were being made by conducting raids/ searches at their known addresses, examining their CDRs/ IPDRs and deploying sources to get their present locations for execution of NBWs, the accused are still on run. 

Also, The Supreme Court has also recently refused to interfere with the Allahabad High Court's order to transfer the probe to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Matter in Brief

In the instant matter, some policemen forcibly entered a 24-year-old man's house took away the young man to the police station with an intent to implicate him falsely, and thereafter, he was detained at the police station.

It was also alleged that thereafter when the policemen brought the man with them, he was not even able to stand and was loudly crying and calling out her mother to save him otherwise the police would kill him.

When the informant (brother of the deceased) went to the police station, later on, he was not allowed to meet with his brother (the detenu), and in the morning, the information was received that his brother had died. He alleged that his brother was murdered by the policemen in police custody.

On the other hand, the police claimed that the deceased was apprehended while he was driving a motorcycle that fell, due to which he received injuries. 

The police said that the man was brutally beaten up by the public after the accident and when he was sent for first aid along with a Sub Inspector and two constables, the Doctor at the CHC referred him for treatment to District Hospital, Jaunpur, and by the time they reached the District Hospital, he had died.

Due to custodial death, a judicial inquiry was entrusted in the matter to the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Jaunpur, and it recorded the statements of 16 witnesses, however, it didn't reach any conclusion.

Thereafter, the matter is going on before the High Court. The matter will be next heard on November 29, 2021. 

Case Title: Ajay Kumar Yadav v. State of U.P. and Another