Anushka Sharma –
Published On: October 26, 2021 at 12:00 IST
The Supreme Court ordered the State of Uttar Pradesh to provide safety to Witnesses of the October 3 violence in Lakhimpur Kheri, which claimed the lives of eight persons, four of whom were protesters who were allegedly mowed down by vehicles in Ashish Mishra’s convoy.
The Court further ordered the State of Uttar Pradesh to ensure that the statements of relevant Witnesses are recorded by the Judicial Magistrate in accordance with Section 164 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
The Bench asked the concerned District Judge to ensure that the Witness statements may be recorded by the nearest available Magistrate if there was any problem due to unavailability of Magistrate.
The Bench comprising Chief Justice of India NV Ramana, Justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli issued these directives after a status report was filed by the State of Uttar Pradesh regarding the state of the Probe.
After the Court expressed concern that the UP Police was “dragging its feet” in the probe, the UP Police obtained the statements of more Witnesses under Section 164 last week.
The Bench was informed that other witnesses’ comments had been recorded under Section 164.
The Bench was also informed that under Section 164, the statements of 30 of the 68 Witnesses had been recorded. Only four Witnesses’ statements were recorded the last time.
The Bench orally told Senior Advocate Harish Salve, who represented the State of Uttar Pradesh that the investigation team must try to identify more eyewitnesses.
The Court also ordered the state of Uttar Pradesh to file a separate reply in the second FIR, which was filed in connection with the counter-case of lynching of three people after farmers were attacked, as well as the killing of a journalist.
The matter will be next heard on November 8.
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