Kin of 4 slain accused move SC against Hyd encounter

Parents of four deceased accused of horrific Hyderabad gang-rape and murder case on Thursday approached the Supreme Court seeking a direction to register an FIR against the police personnel for “fake encounter” killings and award of Rs 50 lakh compensation to each of them.

In a writ petition jointly filed by Jollu Lakshmi, mother of Naveen, Jollu Rajaya, father of Siva, Chinthakuntla Kurmanna, father of Chennakesavalu, Pinjari Hussain, father of Ahmad, contended the police have killed the accused “only to please the public and to destroy the evidence to protect the real culprit”.

The petition was filed a week after the Supreme Court’s order to set up an Inquiry Commission headed by former top court judge Justice V S Sirpurkar to look into circumstances leading to killings of the four in a police encounter on December 6.

The sensational rape and murder of a 27-year-old veterinary doctor, whose charred body was found on November 28, triggered massive outrage across the country.

The accused parents’ petition drawn by advocate P V Krishnamachary and filed by their counsel R Sathish urged the court to call for the records, and direct for registration of FIR against erring police official under Section 302 of IPC.

“As per the settled law the accused persons have a right to prove their innocence by facing trial. In fact, no man can be condemned unheard. Right of free and fair investigation and the criminal trial is not only
available to the victim/deceased/complainant but it also equally available to the accused persons as well,” their plea stated.

In the present case, the police not only infringed the rights of victim girl but it also violated the rights of the alleged accused, it added.