Atiq-Ashraf killing: SC asks UP govt to file comprehensive affidavit related to incident

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday asked Uttar Pradesh Government to file an affidavit mentioning the steps taken with respect to the death of gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother, Ashraf Ahmed, and also the incidents prior to it.
The top court also asked Uttar Pradesh why the vehicle carrying Atiq and Ashraf was not taken to the hospital directly and why were they paraded. A bench of justices S Ravindra Bhat and Dipankar Datta asked the UP government to file an affidavit and listed the matter after three weeks.
The court was hearing a petition seeking to constitute an Independent Expert Committee under the Chairmanship of a former Supreme Court judge to inquire into the killing of Atiq and Ashraf amid police presence.
The court clarified that the UP government in its affidavit shall also mention the steps taken in pursuance of Justice Chauhan's report and disclose steps taken with respect to the incident just prior to the killing of Atiq and his brother.
Earlier Uttar Pradesh Government filed a caveat application in SC on a petition seeking to constitute an Independent Expert Committee under the Chairmanship of a former Supreme Court judge to inquire into the killing of Atiq and Ashraf amid police presence.
A Caveat application is filed by a litigant to ensure that no adverse order is passed against them without being heard.
Advocate Vishal Tiwari, the petitioner in the matter, has sought to constitute an Independent Expert Committee under the Chairmanship of a former Supreme Court judge to inquire into the killing of Atiq and Ashraf amid police presence.
Advocate Vishal Tiwari has moved a plea in Supreme Court seeking to constitute an Independent Expert Committee under the Chairmanship of a Former Supreme Court Justice to inquire into the 183 encounters which had occurred since 2017 as stated by Uttar Pradesh Special Director General of Police (Law and Order) and also to inquire into the police custody murder of Atiq and Ashraf gangster turned politician.
Gangster-turned-politician Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf were shot dead while they were taken to a hospital in Prayagraj on April 15 amid police presence.
Earlier, Advocate Tiwari sought to inquire about the killing of Atiq Ahmed and his brother Ashraf, who was shot dead by assailants during police presence.
Advocate Vishal Tiwari, in his public interest litigation, has also sought to issue direction to unearth the fake encounters by directing the Central Bureau of Investigation to investigate, collect and record the evidence in the Kanpur Bikru Encounter case 2020 in which Vikas Dubey and his aides were killed by police in the encounter as the inquiry commission could not record the evidence in rebuttal of police version and has filed the inquiry report in absence of that.
"The DAREDEVILS which Uttar Pradesh police has tried to become," the petition said.
The petitioner said that his public Interest Litigation is against the violation of the rule of law and oppressive police brutality being perpetrated by Uttar Pradesh.
The petitioner has apprised the court that he has approached the court in a matter pertaining to the Kanpur encounter on Vikas Dubey and said that a similar incident was repeated by Uttar Pradesh police that is encounter killing of Asad son of Atiq Ahmad gangster turned politician and killing of Atiq Ahmad and his brother Ashraf by private assailants when they were in police custody and were taken for medical examination.
The petitioner said that such incidents are a severe threat to the democracy and rule of law, and such acts are establishments of anarchy and prima facie development of police state.
He also mentioned that extra-judicial killings or fake police encounters have been very badly condemned under the law and such things can not exist in a democratic society the police cannot be allowed to become a mode of delivering final justice or to become a punishing Authority.
"The power of punishment is only vested in the Judiciary. The police when becomes DAREDEVILS then the entire Rule of law collapses and generates fear in the mind of people against the police which is very dangerous for Democracy and this also results in further crime," the petitioner said.
"On April 15, the gangster turned politician Atiq Ahmad and his brother Ashraf when being taken for medical examination by the Uttar Pradesh Police, they were in the custody of UP Police and the police had the duty of providing the highest safety to the accused," the lawyer said.
The lawyer said that however few private assailants disguised as media journalists killed and shot dead Atiq and Ashraf in front of the police personnel with no protection given by the police.
"Such is a direct attack on Indian democracy and the rule of law. Later the assailants were arrested but during the commission of the offence, there was no protection and retaliation by the police. Such imposes a question on the transparency and proves this matter as a pre-planned attack with no redressal for the accused," Advocate Vishal Tiwari said in his petition. (ANI)