New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to entertain a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking a court-monitored probe into the alleged ‘fake’ encounter killing of Bharat Bhushan Tiwari in Bihar’s Bhojpur district and raising concerns over the growing trend of extra-judicial killings and “half encounters”.
A Bench of Justices M.M. Sundresh and Sheel Nagu questioned the maintainability of the plea under Article 32 of the Constitution and asked the petitioner to pursue appropriate remedies before the jurisdictional High Court.
During the hearing, advocate Vishal Tiwari, appearing as petitioner-in-person, submitted that the incident was serious and that similar petitions concerning encounter killings were already pending before the apex court.
He argued that the issue involved a violation of the fundamental right to life and warranted the Supreme Court’s intervention. However, the Justice Sundresh-led Bench asked, “Why not the High Court? Why Article 32?”
As the petitioner contended that the Supreme Court had earlier laid down guidelines governing investigations into encounter deaths and sought certain directions from the top court, the Justice Sundresh-led Bench remained unconvinced. “We will not entertain. We will grant liberty to approach the High Court. It’s better to go to High Courts, because they are monitoring better,” it observed.
The apex court subsequently declined to entertain the petition and granted liberty to the petitioner to approach the jurisdictional High Court.
The PIL had sought directions for registration of an FIR in connection with the June 17 encounter killing of Bharat Bhushan Tiwari in Bhojpur, besides seeking a judicial inquiry headed by a former Supreme Court judge and an investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
According to the plea, encounter killings amount to extrajudicial executions and pose a serious threat to the rule of law in a democratic society.
It argued that police personnel involved in encounter deaths often rely on a recurring justification that the deceased attempted to snatch a weapon and open fire while trying to escape, resulting in retaliatory action by the police.
Referring to the Bhojpur incident, the plea said that 28-year-old Bharat Bhushan Tiwari was killed within hours of making a Facebook Live broadcast in which he allegedly expressed willingness to surrender if certain demands were met.
The petition referred to claims made by the deceased’s father, Kashinath Tiwari, who alleged that his son had no criminal record, FIR or charge sheet against him and was shot even after laying down his weapon.
According to the plea, the incident triggered protests in the village, with residents demanding an inquiry into whether the use of lethal force was justified after the alleged surrender.
It further argued that fake encounters and extra-judicial killings amount to a violation of the fundamental right to life and liberty guaranteed under the Constitution.
“The police cannot be allowed to become a mode of delivering final justice or to become a punishing authority. The power of punishment is only vested in the judiciary,” the petition stated.
Besides seeking a probe into the Bhojpur encounter, the PIL had also sought directions to curb extra-judicial killings and “half encounters” and ensure strict compliance with the guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court in the PUCL judgment governing investigations into encounter deaths.
It also referred to recent alleged encounter cases in Uttar Pradesh and claimed that a culture of “half encounters” had emerged in the state, necessitating judicial intervention to safeguard constitutional rights and uphold the rule of law.
(IANS)
