Lakhimpur Kheri violence: SC orders UP govt to file status report; hearing on Friday

Satya Prakash

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, October 7

The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the Uttar Pradesh Government to file a status report in 24 hours on action taken by it, including arrest of accused named in FIRs for murder, with regard to Lakhimpur Kheri violence in which eight persons, including four farmers, were killed on Sunday.

A Bench led by CJI NV Ramana—which had on Wednesday taken suo motu cognisance of the matter on the basis of a letter written by two advocates from Uttar Pradesh—said the report should give details about arrest of accused in all murder case, including that of a journalist.

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Terming the incident as “extremely unfortunate” the Bench—which also included Justice Surya Kant and Justice Hima Kohli—asked the state government to provide immediate medical treatment to the mother of deceased Lovepreet Singh who was in a critical condition.

“Get her admitted to the nearest government hospital,” the Bench told UP Additional Advocate General Garima Prashad after advocate Amrit Pal Singh Khalsa drew the court’s attention to her medical condition caused due to shock of loss of her son.

“We direct the learned Additional Advocate General to look into the matter personally and provide best medical treatment to the mother of the deceased in a reputed Government Medical College/Hospital at UP,” it ordered.

Prashad assured the court that the court’s directions will be complied with immediately.

She told the top court that FIRs had already been registered in the matter and an SIT was investigating the matter. The state government has also set up a commission of inquiry headed by Justice Pradeep Kumar Srivastava (retd) of the Allahabad High Court, she added.

The Bench asked her to put everything, including information regarding some PILs on the issue pending in the Allahabad High Court, in the report to be filed by the state government and posted it for further hearing on Friday.

When Prashad said the incident was “extremely unfortunate”, the Bench said, “We feel the same way.”

Earlier, the suo motu case initiated by the Supreme Court on the Lakhimpur Kheri violence could not be taken at the first call as the two lawyers who wrote to the CJI in this regard failed to turn up for hearing.

Advocates Shiv Kumar Tripathi and CS Panda from Uttar Pradesh—who had written to the CJI on Tuesday demanding a CBI probe into the incident—however, showed up for the hearing at the second call. Tripathi — who could barely manage to address the Bench due to poor Internet connection — complained of violation of human rights of farmers in UP and said the matter should be investigated properly.

During the brief hearing in the first round, CJI Ramana clarified that it was supposed to be a PIL on the basis of the letter written by the two advocates seeking action in the matter. “Doesn’t matter, we’ll hear it nonetheless,” the CJI said during the hearing. Later, the Bench directed the court’s Registry “to convert this Suo Motu Writ Petition (Crl.) into a Public Interest Litigation (Writ Petition Crl.) immediately.”

Senior advocate Harshvir Pratap Sharma, who appeared for an intervenor, raised the issue of the death of a local journalist—Raman Kashyap.