Rapped by the Punjab and Haryana High Court for carrying out a “politically motivated” probe into the Kotkapura firing incident, Punjab Government on Monday decided to file a SLP (special leave petition) before the Supreme Court. At the same time, the Government has decided to reconstitute special investigation team (SIT) as directed by the High Court.
The Chief Minister has issued directions to the state’s Law Department to initiate the process and prepare the state’s case to move the Apex Court against the High Court’s order to quash the probe conducted by the Punjab Government-constituted SIT, headed by IPS officer Kunwar Vijay Partap Singh.
“We held a detailed meeting with the legal experts who were of the view that the High Court, in its judgment, has made some comments or inferences which were out of this Court’s purview and which can be challenged,” said Punjab Congress president Sunil Jakhar after the meeting.
Jakhar said that the Chief Minister has asked the legal department to initiate process of moving the Supreme Court.
Notably, on April 10 — a day after the High Court’s order, the Chief Minister had termed the SIT’s probe into the Kotkapura firing case as “totally fair, impartial and unbiased”, while also announcing that the State Government would challenge in the Supreme Court any orders of the High Court for quashing the investigation of the Punjab Police SIT or removing its chief.
The detailed judgment in the matter was made available on Friday (April 23), in which the Single Bench of Justice Rajbir Sehrawat has given a clean chit to the former Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal and his son Sukhbir Badal in the Kotkapura firing case underlining that conversation between a Chief Minister with the District Administration or the State DGP during disturbed law and order situation was not sufficient to infer conspiracy to kill or injure anybody through police firing upon the protestors.
It added, “…, unless some other material was collected by the investigating officer to establish prior meeting of minds for conspiracy and directly linking the CM to it.”
The Bench has also ruled that IPS officer Kunwar Vijay Partap Singh, who was heading the SIT, indulged in political maneuvering and “misused” his official position.
A wave of disquiet and fury has been triggered in the state Congress unit following the High Court’s judgment in the matter with the party leaders anxiously awaiting the Chief Minister’s decision.
With the Chief Minister now deciding to move the Apex Court, several leaders believed that it would lead to “delay”, putting the party in dock ahead the ensuing state assembly polls. On the other hand, another section of party leaders believed that it would come as a “face-saving” for the government and put on hold the matter till next elections.
Notably, punishing the guilty of sacrilege and related firing incidents was among the major poll promises of the Congress before coming to power in 2017. Now, the party leaders believed that they have to face the people’s ire for not fulfilling the pre-poll promises.
The High Court’s judgment in the matter came as a major setback for the ruling Congress as it had not only quashed the probe conducted by the IG, but has also given clean chit to the Badals.