Hubballi case: Karnataka HC directs state government to follow Supreme Court’s guide to death in police encounters

The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday directed the state government to follow strict guidelines for the Supreme Court in Hubballi case in 2014 regarding the death of the defendant in the police encounter. That’s it, a 35-year-old man was accused of murdering a 5-year-old girl after sexually assaulting her and was shot dead while in police custody.

The division judge, composed of Chief Justice NV Anjaria and Justice Aravind, issued instructions when he heard the PIL petition filed by the People’s Union of Karnataka (PUCL).

With doubts over the police’s claims of death, PUCL sought to preserve the body of Ritesh Kumar, an immigrant worker in Bihar, while expressing concerns that his body might be cremated. The petitioner also pointed out that in 2014, the Apex Court issued a guide with Maharashtra.

“Bad placement”

However, the judge, known as “inappropriate placement,” claimed that the defendant’s body would be cremated because the state speaker told the court that the defendant’s body was only allowed to be buried under the norm in the case encountered by police, as the agency may need to be excavated at a later stage.

AG pointed out to the judge that the first information report (FIR) has been registered and that the investigation has been handed over to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) in accordance with the Apex Court’s guidelines, while clearly indicating that the government will follow the Supreme Court’s guidelines in the case.

Additionally, AG told the court that in this case, no problem with the body occurred because the post-mortem was not completed because his parents or any relatives had not determined the body according to normal conditions. The AG also said that the authorities will keep samples of the body parts (if analysis is required) to conduct an investigation.

Meanwhile, the bench postponed further hearings on the petition until April 24, the government directed the government to form a team to conduct body and camera investigations, in accordance with the Supreme Court’s guidelines.