Gujarat: In High Court, Kheda SP and inspector defend public flogging; interim report finds six policemen at fault

Police have defended in the Gujarat High Court the public flogging of some people from a minority community following stone pelting in the states Kheda district last year saying the persons were cornered to maintain peace and it was not done with any criminal intentThis defence comes even as an interim police report talks of action against six policemen in connection with the incidentKheda Superintendent of Police R H Gadhiya and Police Inspector of Local Crime Branch A V Parmar filed separate affidavits before the bench of Justices N V Anjaria and Niral Mehta on Tuesday in a contempt case regarding the alleged flogging of some Muslims accused of stonepelting during an event last yearDuring Navratri in October 2022 some villagers as well as policemen were injured after a mob comprising members of the Muslim community allegedly hurled stones at a garba dance event at Undhela village in Kheda districtVideos purportedly showing police personnel publicly flogging three of the 13 arrested accused went viral on social media Later some of the accused approached the HC claiming that the police personnel involved in the act had committed contempt of court by flouting Supreme Court directions on people in custody as laid down in the D K Basu vs State of West Bengal caseIn his affidavit Gadhiya said when the accused persons were taken to Undhela village for investigation they tried to misbehave and abuse the police officersWhen 8 accused were brought at the village as part of investigation on October 4 the male accused after getting down from police vehicle started abusing verbally the police officials and one accused Shejadmiya Shukatmiya spitted on police inspector of LCB Ashok Parmar the SP said in his affidavitThe SP further said other accused persons collected stones in their hands and started instigating members of Hindu community who had gathered there The accused did not pay heed to requests made for sitting in a police vehicle and started a scuffle with policeReferring to the alleged flogging incident the SP said that as a result of this incident there was a hue and cry and it is only with a view to maintain the peace and harmony that the suspects were cornered so that no untoward incident further takes place Through the affidavit the SP also informed the court that as soon as he received instructions from the Range IG to inquire into the alleged flogging he deputed Deputy SP of Kapadvanj Division to probe into the issueAlso read Corroded wires welded suspenders behind Morbi bridge tragedy SIT reportIn his interim report of December 1 the DySP stated when the accused persons had started misbehaving the onduty police officials were required to control them using other means instead of physically abusing the accused with lathi As per the interim report submitted by the DySP Kapadvanj Range IG immediately acted against erring police officers and chargesheets have been issued to six policemen including LCB PI A V Parmar while the departmental proceedings are pending Gadhiya saidHe submitted that transcripts of call recordings revealed that the entire incident of stonepelting was preset and premeditated with a view to create fear amongst the members of Hindu community and to disturb the law and order More than 150 persons from the minority community had cordoned off the Mataji Chowk and started pelting stones The premeditated offence left 8 residents and three policemen injured said the SPIn his affidavit Police Inspector A V Parmar claimed that the police officials in question had acted within their powers Respondents policemen acted within the scope and ambit of their powers and there has not been any act committed by them which is beyond the powers conferred on the respondents The acts of respondents are the acts in discharge of their duties and these acts were not done with any criminal intent said Parmar in his affidavitHe drew the courts attention that more or less every year when Hindu festivals like Navratri is celebrated some altercations happen between Hindus and Muslims of the village He added that one of the petitioners is already facing two cases of rioting and he was the main conspirator in this case tooThe petitioners themselves have engaged in disturbing the social fabric of a village by creating rifts between two communities and by assaulting people of that village Petitioners are guilty of not stating true facts before this court and they themselves had created an atmosphere of fear and terror amongst law abiding citizens he saidParmar said the present proceedings initiated by the petitioners for contempt of court are not maintainable as per the lawThe Parliament has already amended the CrPC Code of Civil Procedure 1908 and made appropriate safeguards by inserting provisions for the arrested persons and therefore guidelines issued earlier by the SC in the D K Basu case would give way in favour of those provisions of the amended CrPC he saidThis story has been sourced 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