Reportable
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA
CRIMINAL ORIGINAL JURISDICTION
WRIT PETITION (CRL.) NO. 19 OF 2012
Gulzar Ahmed Azmi & Anr. …Petitioners
VERSUS
Union of India & Ors. …Respondents
O R D E R
Fakkir Mohamed Ibrahim Kalifulla, J.
1. The petitioners have preferred this writ petition under Article 32
read with Article 21 of the Constitution ostensibly in public interest
in which the petitioners pray for a Writ of Mandamus for constitution
of a Committee to make further investigation of all the bomb blasts
cases which have taken place since 2002.
2. When we examine the relief prayed for by the petitioners, we find that
there are as many as six substantive prayers made by them including
constitution of a Committee headed by a retired Judge of the Supreme
Court along with team of competent officers and experts to make
further investigation of all bomb blasts cases which have taken place
since 2002 onwards. The prayer specifically mentions a list by way of
Annexure P-45 wherein the details have been mentioned in order to
monitor the investigation to be ordered while granting any relief in
the writ petition.
3. The further prayer in the writ petition is for a direction to the
respondents to initiate criminal or departmental action against the
erring police officers for having implicated alleged innocent Muslim
boys by fabricating false evidence.
4. The third prayer in the writ petition is for a direction to the
respondents to initiate criminal or departmental action against the
officers of Central and State Intelligence Agencies, who furnished
wrong inputs to the State Police and thereby pressurised them to
arrest innocent Muslim boys.
5. In the fourth prayer the petitioners prayed for a direction to the
respondents to make the contents of the laptops, recovered from Lt.
Col. Purohit and Mahant Dayanand Pandey, public and thereafter make an
inquiry for taking action against the culprits who were involved in
anti-national terror activities.
6. In the fifth prayer they seek for a direction to the first respondent
for taking action against communal organisations like RSS, VHP and
their allied forums who alleged to have indulged in bomb blasts cases
and other terror related activities. In the last prayer they seek for
a direction to release on bail the detenus arrested in bomb blasts
cases referred to in Annexure P-45 against whom there is no clinching
or conclusive evidence.
7. To sum-up the grievance of the petitioners, as per the averments
contained in the petition, is that the real culprits are being
shielded from taking any action against them, while innocent Muslim
boys have been roped in various bomb blasts cases throughout the
country since the year 2002 and in order to unearth the said factor,
this Court should direct the first respondent to constitute a
Committee headed by a retired Judge of the Supreme Court who should be
assisted with the team of officers having competent investigation
skills along with other experts.
8. At the very outset, we wish to state that if the prayer of the
petitioners were to be accepted for whatever grounds stated in the
petition and any such Committee is directed to be constituted that
will only result in making a roving inquiry into the various criminal
proceedings so far lodged connected with cases of bomb blasts all over
the country. We are not, therefore, inclined to countenance such a
wide prayer asked for in this writ petition.
9. Since criminal cases registered in connection with various incidents
are either pending trial before the competent jurisdictional courts or
being investigated by the jurisdictional police, it is premature to
say whether any and if so which of the accused is innocent or has been
falsely implicated. If anyone is falsely roped in any offence either
under the provisions of Indian Penal Code or under any other special
enactments, by way of criminal proceeding, it is needless to state
that there are enough safeguards provided under the various laws and
under the criminal law jurisprudence, to protect the interest of any
such person claiming himself to be innocent and demonstrate before the
concerned Fora that he has been falsely implicated in any offence.
Therefore, it will be for the concerned individual against whom any
criminal proceeding is lodged to work out his remedy. For instance, if
in any particular criminal case, one wishes to seek for further
investigation under Section 173 (8) of the Cr.P.C. the same can always
be effected even after the filing of the final report. Such a power
existing with the Investigating Officer, having been statutorily
provided, it will be a futile exercise if such a statutory exercise is
to be entrusted with a supernumerary body created under the head of a
retired Judge of the Supreme Court along with other team of officers
and experts. When the time tested Criminal Procedure Code and other
statutory provisions are working in the field providing for such well
laid down procedure to be followed in the matter of regulating such
criminal proceedings, the granting of the petitioners’ prayer would
amount to creating a parallel body without any statutory sanction and
to function only under some directions of this Court which would be
lacking in very many procedural details and will ultimately result in
utter chaos and confusion in dealing with the criminal proceedings
which have already been lodged and progressing before various criminal
courts.
10. We are not, therefore, inclined to consider such a wide prayer applied
for by the petitioners for constitution of a special Committee. The
other directions prayed for by the petitioners will also only result
in interfering with the already pending proceedings in which the
concerned individuals who have been arrayed as accused or otherwise
can seek for appropriate relief either for further investigation or
for their discharge or in the event of any other adverse orders passed
by the concerned Court, approach the higher fora for redressal of
their grievances. There are various levels of Appellate Fora to
examine the manner in which the proceedings are being pursued before
the Courts wherein such criminal proceedings have already been lodged
or in the event of any adverse orders having been passed, examine the
correctness of such orders in order to grant appropriate relief or to
confirm such decisions taken by the lower fora.
11. It will be for the concerned individuals who face such criminal
proceedings to work out their remedy in the manner known to law. Even
if such individuals are not in a position to seek for any appropriate
legal assistance on their own, having regard to the set up of Legal
Service Authority and its effective functioning, in the nook and
corner of the country, there should be no dearth of legal assistance
for those affected persons to seek for such legal aid free of cost.
Therefore, when there is no dearth for seeking legal assistance free
of cost, on that score as well it cannot be held that the concerned
individuals will be left with no remedy. In fact, it is now well known
that on mere asking of the concerned presiding officer, those involved
in such criminal proceedings are being offered free legal aid of high
calibre in order to ensure that no innocent person is being punished
for want of proper legal assistance.
12. Having regard to the above factors, we do not find any scope to
entertain this writ petition and leave it open for the concerned
parties against whom any criminal proceeding is lodged to work out
their remedies in the appropriate manner before the appropriate forum
in accordance with law. The writ petition fails and the same is
dismissed.
…..……….……………………….....J.
[T.S. Thakur]
……………………………………………J.
[Fakkir Mohamed Ibrahim Kalifulla]
New Delhi;
October 11, 2012
