SC asks AHRC to probe Assam ‘fake encounters’

A bench of justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh reinstated complaints before the AHRC that had been stalled since January 2022, emphasising that “fair and impartial inquiry” was essential to ensure justice for victims.

The Supreme Court on Wednesday ordered the Assam Human Rights Commission (AHRC) to conduct an independent and expeditious probe into 171 alleged fake police encounters in the state that resulted in 56 deaths and 145 injuries between May 2021 and August 2022.

A bench of justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh reinstated complaints before the AHRC that had been stalled since January 2022, emphasising that “fair and impartial inquiry” was essential to ensure justice for victims. (HT PHOTO)

A bench of justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh reinstated complaints before the AHRC that had been stalled since January 2022, emphasising that “fair and impartial inquiry” was essential to ensure justice for victims and uphold the rule of law.

The court’s intervention came after the Gauhati High Court dismissed a petition seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe in January 2023. The AHRC had earlier refused to examine the complaints citing the pending high court hearing.

Lawyer Arif Mohammad Yeasin Jwadder filed the petition alleging that Assam police violated Supreme Court guidelines established in the 2014 People’s Union for Civil Liberties v State of Maharashtra case. The PUCL judgment mandated magisterial inquiries following encounter deaths, FIR registration, and forensic examination of weapons.

Petitioner’s advocate Prashant Bhushan argued that procedural safeguards were violated, citing instances where FIRs were registered against victims, investigations were conducted by police from the same state or district, and ballistic reports were not obtained in all cases.

Justice Kant, who authored the judgment, noted that while some of the petitioner’s allegations appeared “factually incorrect or incomplete,” the gravity of issues involving Article 21 fundamental rights required meaningful enforcement of procedural safeguards.

“The principle of fairness, which is the bedrock of all just legal processes, mandates that any inquiry into the alleged excesses must be independent and insulated from institutional bias,” the bench stated.

The court directed the AHRC to issue public notices inviting victims and family members to come forward; publish notices in at least one national English daily and a prominent vernacular newspaper;

preserve victim confidentiality; and engage serving or retired police officers of “impeccable integrity” for deeper probes if required, provided they outrank those under investigation.

The state, represented by solicitor general Tushar Mehta and additional advocate general Nalin Kohli, was ordered to provide access to records, forensic resources, and remove institutional barriers hindering the AHRC’s functioning.

The Assam State Legal Services Authority was directed to provide legal assistance to victims, while the petitioner was permitted to assist the AHRC if engaged by victims.

The court also set aside the high court’s earlier order, resolving jurisdictional issues that had prevented the matter from proceeding.

The court clarified that its order should not be seen as finding “mala fides or institutional bias” against the state. It refused to issue broad directives for independent probes, stating that “broad-brush directives without individual scrutiny could result in miscarriage of justice.”

The bench noted that the AHRC, headed by a retired chief justice of the Gauhati High Court, was well-positioned to conduct the inquiry with “sensitivity, impartiality, and diligence.”

Jwadder welcomed the verdict, calling it a “legal milestone” and a moment of hope for ordinary citizens seeking justice.

“This is a step towards justice for those voiceless families who have suffered silently, whose sons were shot and labelled without trial, without proof, without remorse,” he said.

While his petition sought a CBI or Special Investigation Team probe, Jwadder said handing the matter to an independent constitutional body would help truth emerge.

“No one wearing a uniform should feel empowered to take a life without fearing the consequences. This fight will go on not just in the courtroom, but in the conscience of the nation,” he added.

HT reached out to the Assam government and the Opposition but did not get a comment.

(With inputs from Utpal Parashar)