এলো ১৯৬৭ খ্রিস্টাব্দ। তৎকালীন মন্ত্রী হরেকৃষ্ণ কোঙারের জ্ঞাতসারে যুক্তফ্রন্টের পুলিশ গুলি চালিয়ে সাতজন কৃষক মহিলাকে হত্যা করল। এদের মধ্যে একজনের পিঠে বাঁধা ছিল এক দুধের শিশু। পুলিশের গুলি মাকে হত্যা করে শিশুটিকেও এফোঁড় ওফোঁড় করে দিয়েছিল। সত্তর দশকে শুধুমাত্র কলকাতার বুকেই ১৭৮৩ জন যুবককে হত্যা করেছিল পুলিশ। সে সময় নকশাল মানেই সে বধযোগ্য। এনকাউন্টার’-এর নামে পুলিশ ঠান্ডা মাথায় হাজার হাজার যুবককে হত্যা করেছিল। সত্তরের দশক ছিল নরমেধ যজ্ঞের দশক। পুলিশের গুলিতে নিশ্চিহ্ন করে দেওয়া হয়েছিল এক সম্ভাবনাময় তরুণ প্রজন্মকে। মরিচঝাঁপির নিরীহ অসহায় মানুষদের পুড়িয়ে গণহত্যা, আনন্দমার্গীদের গণহত্যা, নন্দীগ্রামের গণহত্যার ঘটনাগুলির মতো এরকম অজস্র ঘটনা আছে, সেগুলি পরপর সাল-তারিখ দিয়ে আলোচনা করলে একটা গোটা মহাভারতে আঁটবে না।
সুপ্রিমকোর্ট ধৃতের উপর পুলিশের অত্যাচারের পরিপ্রেক্ষিতে তাঁর একটি G|Sacri Chai Shri D.K. Basu,Ashok K. Johri vs State Of West Bengal,State Of U.P on 18 December, 1996 Oulfat moacha জ্ঞাতব্যের জন্য হুবহু তুলে ধরলাম।
WITH WRIT PETITION (CRL) NO. 592 OF 1987 JUDGMENT DR. ANAND, J.
The Executive Chairman, Legal Aid Services, West Bengal, a non-political organisation registered under the Societies Registration Act, on 26th August, 1986 addressed a letter to the Chief Justice of India drawing his attention to certain news items published in the Telegraph dated 20, 21 and 22 of July, 1986 and in the Statesman and India express dated 17th August, 1986 regarding deaths in police lock-ups and custody. The Executive Chairman after reproducing the new items submitted that it was imperative to examine the issue in depth and to develop “custody jurisprudence” and formulate modalities for awarding compensation to the victim and/or family members of the victim for attrocities and death caused in police custody and to provide for accountability of the efforts are often made to hush up the matter of lock-up deaths and thus the crime goes unpunished and “flourishes”. It was requested that the letter alongwith the new items be treated as a writ petition under “public interest litigation” category.
Considering the importance of the issue raised in the letter being concerned by frequent complaints regarding custodial violence and deaths in police lock up, the letter was treated as a writ petition and notice was issued on 9.2.1987 to the respondents.
In response to the notice, the State of West Bengal filed a counter. It was maintained that the police was no hushing up any matter of lock-up death and that whereever police personnel were found to be responsible for such death, action was being initiated against them. The respondents characterised the writ petition as misconceived, misleading and untenable in law.
While the writ petition was under consideration a letter addressed by Shri Ashok Kumar Johri on 29.7.87 to the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India drawing the attention of this Court to the death of one Mahesh Bihari of Pilkhana, Aligarh in police custody was received. That letter was also treated as a writ petition and was directed to be listed alongwith the writ petition filed by Shri D.K. Basu. On 14.8.1987 this Court made the following order :
“in almost every states there are allegations and these allegations are now increasing in frequency of deaths in custody described generally by newspapers as lock-up deaths. At present there does not appear to be any machinery to effectively deal with such allegations. Since this is an all India question concerning all States, it is desirable to issues notices to all the State Governments to find out whether they are desire to say anything in the matter. Let notices issue to all the State Governments. Let notice also issue to the Law Commission of India with a request that suitable suggestions may be returnable in two months from today.”
In response to the notice, affidavits have been filed on behalf of the States of West Bengal, Orissa, Assam Himachal Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Harayana, Tamil Nadu, Meghalaya, Maharashtra and Manipur. Affidavits have also been filed on behalf of Union Territory of Chandigarh and the Law Commission of India.
