COME CLEAN OR ELSE: HC

CUSTODY DEATH: Court asks searching questions even as it says it is not suspecting the police

- Urvi Mahajani

Observing that the 'shootout' of the accused in the Badlapur sexual assault case, Akshay Shinde, 24, could have been avoided, the Bombay High Court said that the state crime investigation department (CID) must conduct a fair and impartial probe. The court said that were it to find that the probe was not being conducted properly, it would be "constrained to pass appropriate orders".

A bench of Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Prithviraj Chavan, asking tough questions on the timeline of incidents, remarked that though it did not suspect the police, the latter must come clean. "The investigation has to be done fairly and impartially. If we find that this is not done then we would be constrained to pass appropriate orders," the bench said. "We are not suspecting the police of their activities but expect it to come clean on all aspects."

The court was hearing a petition filed by the father of Akshay Shinde, who alleged that it was a 'fake encounter' and sought the registering of an FIR against the policemen involved. He has also sought compensation. The bench has asked the police to inform its decision on the same by the date of the next hearing, on October 3.