The court has directed the Crime Branch to provide necessary material to the magistrate and directed the inquiry to be completed expeditiously
The Bombay High Court on Monday, once again pulled up Byculla jail authorities for failing to send requisite material for magisterial inquiry into the death of inmate Manjula Shetye.
Meanwhile, advocate Nitin Satpute appearing for the petitioner told the court that Dr Vishwas Roke said to be suspended as per some media reports was a temporary employee at the JJ Hospital, and therefore, he cannot be suspended. Roke had issued the first injury certificate.
As per section 176 (1) of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), within 24 hours of a custodial death, authorities have to inform the magistrate to carry out an independent inquiry. They have to provide details of the inmate and case details. However, the court learned that only the FIR filed with the Nagpada police station by an inmate and an autopsy report was provided.
A division bench of Justice RM Sawant and Justice Sadhana Jadhav said, "You wrote to the magistrate on July 6, many days after the inmate died (June 23). You (prisons department) have not done your duty properly. We have a strong doubt that it is being done deliberately."
The bench added, "You tried to absolve yourself of section 176 of CrPC by saying that it was an accidental death. Even the post mortem was conducted the next day."
The court has directed the Crime Branch to provide necessary material to the magistrate and directed the inquiry to be completed expeditiously. "Facts stated by the prison department and the investigating agency don't augur well with the investigation carried out presently," the judges said.
CASE AT A GLANCE
- HC to hear Crime Branch's status report on August 24
- The police have arrested six prison officials so far in
- On June 30, Pradeep Bhalerao filed a PIL seeking a CID inquiry
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