JK Local Court Orders Judicial Probe Into Death Of NDPS Accused Who Allegedly Hanged Himself In Police Lock Up

A Local Court in Jammu and Kashmir has ordered a Judicial Probe into the death of an NDPS Accused Abdul Latief who allegedly hanged himself in a lock-up at Police Station, Tehsil-Chatroo, Kishtwar last month.

The Principal Sessions Judge, Kishtwar, Y.P. Kotwal has ordered the judicial probe in terms of Section 176 (1A) of CrPC on a plea moved before it by the Jammu and Kashmir District Bar Association, Kishtwar.

Latief was arrested in February 2022 with narcotics substances and accordingly a case under FIR Number 18/2022 under relevant Sections was registered against him at Police Station Chatroo. He was kept in lock-up at Police Station Chatroo, where, the police claims, he hanged himself with a blanket and died by suicide.

The application before the Court

The Bar Association alleged in its plea that Latief died in suspicious circumstances while In the custody of the Police and as per the mandate of law, the concerned Police Station headed by Station House Officer was under a legal and statutory obligation to make a written report of the same to the Court under whose orders the said accused had been remanded to the custody of Police concerned.

The plea further submitted that in addition to the enquiry or investigation by the Police, an enquiry was required to be conducted by the Judicial Magistrate within whose local jurisdiction the offence has been committed, however, it added, the police concerned, in dereliction of their duties as warranted under the mandate of Police Act/Police Rules as also the Criminal Procedure Code, neither reported about the said suspicious custodial death of the accused Abdul Latief, nor any request for holding an enquiry by the Judicial Magistrate concerned, had been made.

Court's observations 

Having perused the narration of facts including the Police report, the Court noted that when the deceased allegedly committed suicide and died, he was very much in the custody of the Police, and therefore, the question was - whether the deceased committed suicide or is a victim of the alleged torture or ill-treatment by the Police.

However, the Court further noted that it can't venture to resolve this factual dispute and therefore, it would require a thorough investigation/inquiry in order to unearth the truth.

Further, the Court noted that Police is conducting inquest proceedings, whereas SOM Marwah is holding an inquiry in terms of Section 176 (1) Cr. P.C, however, it stressed that they have not submitted their reports to date.

In view of this, taking into account the Sub-section (1-A) of Section 176 of the code of Criminal Procedure, the Court ordered a magisterial inquiry into the matter and directed the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Kishtwar to conduct an inquiry into the matter in two weeks.

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