Rights panel gives police clean chit in Delhi shootout (Lead)
July 22nd, 2009 - 10:27 pm ICT by IANSNew Delhi, July 22 (IANS) The National Human Rights Commission Wednesday gave a clean chit to Delhi Police, saying their action did not violate human rights in a south Delhi shootout in which two suspected militants and a police officer were killed in September last year.
A four-member team, headed by NHRC acting chairman G.P. Mathur, submitted its 30-page report on the gun battle near Batla House to the Delhi High Court division bench of Chief Justice Ajit Prakash Shah and Justice Manmohan.
“We are clearly of the opinion that having regard to the material placed before us, it cannot be said that there has been any violation of human rights by action of police,” the NHRC said.
The action taken by police in which two people were killed “is fully protected by law”, said the report.
“There is ample and sufficient material before us which leads to the irresistible conclusion that there was imminent danger to the life of the police party,” the report says.
Two suspected Indian Mujahideen terrorists were killed in the gun battle. ‘Encounter specialist’ police inspector M.C. Sharma also lost his life in the shootout with the suspected terrorists Sep 19, 2008.
The court had directed the NHRC probe on a plea of an NGO, Act Now For Harmony and Democracy, which had questioned the police version of the gun battle.
It was alleged that the police had staged the shootout to ward off the pressure after the serial blasts that killed over 20 in Delhi, a week before gun battle at the Batla House in Jamia Nagar area of south Delhi.
The report said police had fired “the shots in self-defence”. However, the NHRC said its team has not probed the credentials of the suspected terrorists killed in the shootout and their role, if any, in the serial blasts.
The court took the report on record and asked the rights panel to put the contents of the report on the NHRC’s website.
The court also directed the commission to give a copy of the report to the NGO and slated the next hearing in the case to Aug 12.
The court had May 21 asked the NHRC to complete within two months its enquiry into the controversial shootout.
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- NHRC gives clean chit to Delhi Police in Batla House encounter case - Jul 22, 2009
- Want justice for Batla house accused, says Digvijay - Jan 12, 2012
- Apex court says no to probe into Batla house killings (Lead) - Oct 30, 2009
- Court's no to another probe into Batla House shootout (Second Lead) - Aug 26, 2009
- Want justice for Batla house accused, says Digvijay (Second Lead) - Jan 13, 2012
- Batla House shootout: Court paves way for trial (Lead) - Feb 15, 2011
- Batla House fit case for magisterial probe: NHRC - Mar 18, 2009
- Batla House encounter genuine, no re-opening: Chidambaram - Jan 12, 2012
- Father of slain terrorist moves Delhi High Court - Jul 28, 2009
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