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| ET stands vindicated -- II | | In a hopeless situation judiciary came to the rescue of CRPF | | EARLY TIMES REPORT
JAMMU, Jan 17: The Early Times stood vindicated on January 14, 2011, when the CRPF's counsel Bhupinder Singh Slathia and his associates knocked at the doors of the Jammu & Kashmir High Court and demanded not just the removal of Justice (Retd) Bashir-ud-Din but the disbanding of the Commission of Inquiry itself, saying that the "petitioners apprehend that at least the Chairman of the Commission would not discharge his duties in a fair and impartial manner" and that the "apprehensions of the petitioners are that on July 30, 2010 Hon'ble Justice (Retd) Bashir-ud-Din made a statement that has been published in various newspapers, including English daily Rising Kashmir." (The Early Times has accessed the copy of the petition filed by Bhupinder Singh Slathia and his associates.)
So much so that the petitioners said in their petition that they "have reasonable apprehensions that the Hon'ble Justice (Retd) Bashir-ud-Din has a biased and prejudiced mind, and, hence, a fair and impartial inquiry cannot be expected from him"; that his "statement leaves no doubt that the above-named Chairman has a pre-conceived notion"; and that "it shall be no exaggeration to say that he has already decided the issue even before holding the inquiry by the Commission." In fact, the petitioners, including Special DG, CRPF, and BS Slathia, referred to the statement on which the Early Times had reflected in its issue of August 1, 2010, and opined that the Chairman had delivered the judgment even before holding an inquiry and that the Commission of Inquiry was unlikely to adopt an impartial and fair approach towards the CRPF.
Besides, the petitioners submitted that the statement made by the Chairman of the Commission "is categorical in nature and has left no gray areas in it"; that "the views expressed by the Chairman…have elements of finality"; that "it is established and amply proved that the Chairman…believes that the security forces on being requisitioned to aid the local police/administration, notwithstanding the alarming situation created by the rioters/anti-national elements must never fire on the rioters under any circumstances come what may"; that "holding such a view is quite contrary to the settled position of law with regard to the type and quantum of force used in dispersing unlawful assemblies"; that the "chairman of the Commission of Inquiry does not have an open mind on the issue"; that "having made such a statement…(he) disqualifies him from conducting this inquiry"; that the "petitioners apprehend that such a Chairman would go through the notions of conducting the inquiry for the sake of formality alone as he has already made up his mind'; that "should Hon'ble Justice Bashir-ud-Din be allowed to continue as the Chairman of the Commission of Inquiry" knowing it full well that "there would be a gross miscarriage of justice"; that "the petitioner has lost faith in the Commission of Inquiry"; that "in case the said Commission is allowed to proceed further with the inquiry, it is sure to indict the law abiding and innocent CRPF troops"; and that the "chairman of the Commission" has a particular "mindset" that makes the petitioner "apprehend that the CRPF troops shall not get justice ad are sure to be indicted."
What does all this suggest? It suggests two things. One, the Chairman of the Commission of Inquiry must go because he has made certain statements that only establish that he has a particular mindset. And, secondly, the Commission of Inquiry needs to be disbanded "because", in the words of the petitioners, "the CRPF troops after having been requisitioned by the State Govt. to aid in controlling the rioters/unruly mobs, besides anti-social/anti-national elements on their deployment in the Kashmir Valley are entitled to protection in law and no one, whosoever he may be, can be allowed to visit them with civil/criminal consequences with a pre-judged/prejudiced mindset."
In short, the petitioners want the State High Court to "quash the impunged Notification issued vide SRO No. 283 Dated: 29th July 2010 by the State Government of J&K through the Law Department whereby the Respondent 4 (Justice (Retd) Bashir-ud-Din and 5 (Justice (Retd) YP Nargotra) have been appointed as Chairman and Member of the Commission of Inquiry for holding inquiry into the alleged incidents under the impunged Notification" and "restrain the respondent No. 3 (Commission of Inquiry) from proceeding with the Commission of Inquiry under the impunged Notification in any manner whatsoever." (To be continued) |
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