Punjab Police, it seems, is living up to its dented image for all the wrong reasons once again. Infamous for implicating innocents, the State police force on Tuesday received yet another blow with Justice Mehtab Singh Gill Commission of Inquiry coming out with a list of 47 more cases of political vendetta, taking the total to 177.
Set up for detecting political vendetta and false implications in criminal cases registered during a decade-long rule of the SAD-BJP combine, the two-member Commission submitted its second interim report on Tuesday- just within a month after the first one was submitted.
In the first report, the Commission had recommended compensation in 130 cases out of 178 examined by the Commission then, but also recommended cancellation of FIRs or withdrawal of cases in another 19 cases.
The Commission has, so far, received a whopping 4,200 cases till date, and examined a total of 284 cases, including 172 examined in the first report. The former District and Sessions Judge BS Mehandiratta is another member of the panel.
As the worst fears of false implications by the Punjab Police apparently came true, the Commission’s second report has recommended cancellation of FIRs in 37 cases.
In another four cases where the accused have been acquitted by the courts, the panel not only recommended the payment of compensation to the accused and its recovery from the “erring” investigating officer, but also suggested initiation of criminal proceedings against the first informant or certain police officers under section 182 of the Indian Penal Code - regarding false information, with intent to cause public servant to use his lawful power to the injury of another person.
In the remaining six cases, the panel has recommended other action, such as not to file challans in the courts.
After receiving the report, the Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh has marked the report to the Home Secretary for detailed examination and further action.
The Commission, after examining total of 106 complaints in its second report, has given two separate lists of cases, including the details of the complaints dismissed and complaints in which recommendations of action to be taken have been made by the Commission.
The action has been recommended in 47 “false” cases or FIRs by the Commission wherein the final report under Section 173 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC) has not been presented so far and the accused have been acquitted by the courts etc.
In 37 cases out of these, the Commission has recommended to the Home and Judicial Department to make requests to the Courts in a legal and proper manner for cancellation of the FIRs. The cancellation has been recommended after taking orders from the appropriate court.
The Commission has also dismissed 59 complaints outrightly being frivolous and not meriting consideration as they related to personal civil disputes, ranging from matrimonial to property, and did not fall into its jurisdiction.
The Commission did not go into these complaints, in many of which challans had already been filed or the case was pending in court, as these were not found to be politically motivated.