When police officials don uniforms, they must shed personal and religious biases: SC

New Delhi: When police officials don uniforms, they must shed their personal and religious predilections and biases, the Supreme Court on Thursday underscored and formed a special investigation team to probe an alleged murder in communal riots that broke out in Maharashtra's Akola in 2023.

Slamming Maharashtra Police for dereliction of duty and sheer carelessness in not registering an FIR in the matter, a bench of Justices Sanjay Kumar and Satish Chandra Sharma directed the state's home department secretary to constitute an SIT, comprising senior police officers of Hindu and Muslim communities, to undertake an investigation by registering an FIR.

"Needless to state, when members of the police force don their uniforms, they are required to shed their personal predilections and biases, be they religious, racial, casteist or otherwise. They must be true to the call of duty attached to their office and their uniform with absolute and total integrity. Unfortunately, in the case on hand, this did not happen," the bench said.

Clashes broke out in May, 2023, in the Old City area of Akola after a religious post about Prophet Muhammad went viral on social media.

The incident resulted in the death of one Vilas Mahadevrao Gaikwad and injuries to eights persons including the petitioner in the case.

According to the petitioner Mohammad Afzal Mohammad Sharif, four persons assaulted Gaikwad by a sword, iron pipe and other objects.

The petitioner said the four assailants then damaged his vehicle and assaulted him with their weapons on his head and neck.

He was admitted in a hospital and his statement recorded by the police, but no FIR was registered.

Sharif, through his father, moved the Bombay High Court against the police officers for not filing FIR.

The high court, however, dismissed his petition, suspecting his bonafides.

Maharashtra Police, on the other hand, submitted Sharif's claim of being an eyewitness was never substantiated during investigation.

It was claimed information about his admission in the hospital was received, but when an officer went there, the petitioner was not in a position to speak.

Coming down heavily on police officials, the top court directed the secretary to initiate appropriate disciplinary action against all erring police officials for the patent dereliction of duties.

"Measures shall also be initiated to instruct and sensitise the rank and file in the police department as to what law requires of them in the discharge of their duties.The investigation report of the special investigation team, to be constituted pursuant to the direction of this court, shall be placed before this court within three months from today," the bench said.

The top court said the affidavits filed by the police inspector of the Old City Police Station, Akola, tried to attribute motives to the petitioner and the same was willingly accepted and acted upon by the high court, but it was not persuaded to agree at this stage.

"It was for the police to investigate the truth or otherwise of the specific allegations made by the appellant, a 17-year-old boy, who asserted that he was an eyewitness to the murder of Vilas Mahadevrao Gaikwad and was himself assaulted by the very same assailants," the bench said.