No injury, yet Punjab Police lift blood stains from 'place of occurrence': HC finds it shocking

Tribune News Service

Saurabh Malik

Chandigarh, October 6

Implication of innocent persons by the Punjab Police has been a matter of surmise for long. However, an order passed by the Punjab and Haryana High Court has categorically placed the police in the dock for framing people. The Bench has expressed shock that the police lifted blood stains from a “place of occurrence” though nobody suffered any injury.

What the Bench said

• The Division Bench of Justice Sureshwar Thakur and Justice NS Shekhawat asserted that the overjealousness of the police to falsely implicate the accused, in collusion with the complainant, was apparent in the instant case
• The investigating officer claimed having visited the place of occurrence before taking the blood stains; the same were “converted” into parcels and sealed with his “seal impression”

The Division Bench of Justice Sureshwar Thakur and Justice NS Shekhawat asserted that the overjealousness of the police to falsely implicate the accused, in collusion with the complainant, was apparent from the fact that the investigating officer claimed having visited the place of occurrence before taking the blood stains. The same were “converted” into parcels and sealed with his “seal impression”.

All memos prepared in the process were also witnessed by two police officials. One of them stated that he also visited the place with the investigating officer when the blood stains were lifted and converted into parcels.

“It is shocking to note that nobody had suffered any injury in the instant case and still the police had taken blood stains. This clearly shows that a crude attempt had been made by the police to falsely involve the accused in the instant case,” the Bench asserted.

The Bench was hearing an appeal filed by the “complainant-victim” against a judgment, dated September 2, 2021, passed by the Jalandhar Additional Sessions Judge, whereby the respondent-accused were acquitted of the charges of attempt to murder, criminal intimidation, criminal conspiracy and other offences.

The Bench, during the course of the hearing, was told “very grave and serious charges” had been levelled against the respondent-accused that they had planned to murder the appellant by providing money to two persons. Even, the investigating officer recovered two empty cartridges from the place of occurrence and admitted the same in his examination-in-chief.

The Bench asserted that it was apparent that nobody witnessed the occurrence and the prosecution story had been rendered doubtful.

Upholding the acquittal order, the Bench added that the rule of prudence made it clear that the holding of a test identification parade was necessary, when nobody witnessed the occurrence and the accused were unknown to the complainant or the witnesses.

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