Delhi HC seeks status report on vigilance inquiry in police atrocity resulting in spinal injury to victim

By Dhiraj Beniwal
New Delhi [India], April 14 : The Delhi High Court recently sought a status report on the steps taken by the Delhi Police on the vigilance report against three of its personnel in a matter of alleged illegal detention and custodial torture resulting in spinal injury to the victim.
The High Court noted that allegations are found true in a vigilance inquiry conducted by Delhi Police itself.
Justice Jasmeet Singh issued notice to the Centre, Delhi Police, and three erring Police personnel of Police Station Fatehpur Beri, Delhi.
The victim Waseem Khan has moved a plea seeking registration of an FIR and investigation against the police officials named in the vigilance inquiry report and their dismissal from the service.
Advocate Harsimran Duggal, counsel for the petitioner drew the attention of the Court to the vigilance inquiry report of August 2, 2021.
"In view of expert opinion by the medical board, statement of complainant/victim and witnesses, pleas of alleged police officials regarding his fit condition at the time of walking out police station after handing over him to his maternal uncle by local police cannot be entertained. Hence, allegations made in the complaint against all alleged police officials namely SI Satyender Gulia, HC Jitender, and Ct Praveen Kumar are proved," the operative portion of the report reads.
Advocate Rajesh Mahajan, Additional Public Prosecutor (APP) for State, stated that he has no instructions on the follow-up actions to the vigilance inquiry report.
Then bench directed that the APP shall file a status report within four weeks indicating clearly the steps which have been taken post-August 2, 2021 against police officials named in the vigilance report. The matter has been listed for further hearing on August 29, 2022.
Petitioner Waseem Khan moved a petition through Advocate Natasha Garg and Harsimran Duggal alleging illegal detention and brutal beating at the police station Fatehpur Beri on May 17, 2021.
The petition stated that the petitioner is only 31 years of age and has now been left with a serious life long spinal injury due to the custodial torture inflicted upon him on the night of May 17, 2021, in Fatehpur Beri Police Station at the hands of Sub Inspector Satyender Gulia, HC Jitender and Constable Praveen. This fact has now been conclusively established by way of the vigilance inquiry report conducted by the ACP Vigilance.
The petitioner has sought a direction from the Commissioner of Police, Delhi to investigate the two complaints filed on 21 May 2021 and registration of FIR against the erring police officials. He also sought a direction from the Special Commissioner of Polie (Vigilance) to immediately take action against those police officials named in the inquiry conducted by the ACP.
The petitioner has also sought a direction to the Central government to pay due compensation to him for the illegal confinement and atrocities committed by the police officials.
Petitioner was taken to the Fatehpur Beri police station by the police officials in the pretext of recording his statement in connection to a fight to which he was a witness and had called the local police at 100 number to report the matter, the petition stated.