Court raps police over honour killing

The Delhi high court, expressing concern over the rising number of honour killings, on Wednesday directed the police to ensure prompt action in cases where couples in inter-caste and inter-religious marriages complain of threats from family members.

The Delhi high court, expressing concern over the rising number of honour killings, on Wednesday directed the police to ensure prompt action in cases where couples in inter-caste and inter-religious marriages complain of threats from family members.

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The court, while dealing with the honour killing of a newly-wed girl, made it clear to the police commissioner that this was the only way such incidents could be curbed.

The court was hearing the plea of Lalit Vats, whose wife Deepti Chikara was allegedly killed by her brother, mother and uncle allegedly to save the family’s honour. Vats, a data-entry operator at the Comptroller and Auditor-General’s office here, married a school teacher belonging to another caste against the wishes of both families on February 23 this year. He alleged that instead of taking action on his compliant after his wife went missing, the police began threatening him.

Taking note of Vats’s plea, the high court bench asked the north-west Delhi deputy commissioner of police (DCP) to change the investigating officer and look into the case personally.

“The Office of Police Commissioner will look into the delay in uploading the photographs and other details of the victim on the Zonal Integrated Police Network (ZIPNET) and ensure that this is not repeated,” a bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and SP Garg said on Wednesday.

It also asked the DCP to provide protection to Vats and sought status reports of the case within six weeks.

Vats had moved the high court, seeking directions to the police to make a thorough inquiry into the role and conduct of the local police in the entire matter.