High Court orders SIT to probe woman’s death at police station

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, August 14

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has directed the Bathinda Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) to constitute a special investigation team (SIT) in the case of a woman’s death under mysterious circumstances at the Ballianwali police station.

The court has also directed that the SIT should be headed by an experienced police officer of the rank of an SP, having two other members with good service record.

The team is to look into the inquiry matter associating the petitioner and taking into consideration the evidence pointed out or produced by her.

The report is to be submitted within two months and then the court is to be informed in that regard. Till then, the filling of challan be kept in abeyance.

Bathinda SSP Dr Nanak Singh was personally present in the court for the hearing. He said on completion of investigation, a challan has been filed against a paternal aunt and uncle of the deceased.

Jasveer Kaur (21) of Dadu village had allegedly committed suicide at the police station on May 21, 2016. Her family members had alleged that she was tortured to death.

In the last hearing , the High Court had summoned the Bathinda SSP and the investigating officer in the case to be present in person during the hearing scheduled for August 13, after a petition was filed by deceased’s mother Malkit Kaur in the High Court through counsel Gurpreet Singh Bhasin.

Jasveer Kaur, a resident of Dadu village in Sirsa, and Balwinder Kaur, a resident of Kotra, used to work in a thread factory in Ambala.

On May 20, 2016, while going to Kotra village, both went to Gurdwara Dukhniwaran Sahib in Patiala where Balwinder Kaur went missing.

When Jasveer Kaur reached Balwinder’s house, the latter’s family members handed her over to the police at the Ballianwali police station.

On May 21, 2016, Jasveer Kaur died under mysterious circumstances in the bathroom at the Ballianwali police station.

At that time, under pressure, the police allegedly got a thumb impression on blank papers from the deceased’s illiterate mother and termed the incident as suicide.

In action taken under Section 174 of the CrPC, the police have written that the area magistrate had given verbal orders for not conducting videography of the post-mortem.

Later, after the High Court’s intervention, the police registered a case of abetment of suicide against deceased’s relative Kulwinder Kaur and Ajmer Singh, who were witness when action was initiated by the police under Section 174 of the CrPC.

Deceased’s mother Malkit Kaur said her daughter died due to police torture at the Balianwali police station, but the police projected it as a suicide.