Mumbai: Four of the five policemen held “responsible” for the custodial death of Akshay Shinde, an accused in the Badlapur sexual assault case, have approached the Bombay High Court (HC) seeking a copy of the magistrate’s inquiry report.
The officers have filed intervention applications in the petition by Shinde’s father, Anna Shinde, who has sought a probe into his son’s alleged “murder” and the registration of an FIR against the police personnel involved.
The bench of Justices Revati Mohite-Dere and Neela Gokhale questioned whether the State had taken a decision on registering an FIR based on the magisterial inquiry report and which investigating agency would probe the matter.
The magistrate’s report, submitted to the HC on January 20, found that the officers in the police van, which was used to transfer Shinde from Taloja Prison to Kalyan, were accountable for his death. Senior Police Inspector Sanjay Shinde of the Thane crime branch, Assistant Police Inspector Nilesh More, Head Constables Abhijeet More and Harish Tawade, and Police Constable Satish Khatal were named in the findings.
Of these, Sanjay Shinde, Nilesh More, Abhijeet More, and Tawade have approached the HC through Advocates Sayaji Nangre and Sameer Nangre.
Their counsel, Ashok Mundargi, submitted that they were filing an intervention application for a “limited purpose” — to obtain a copy of the inquiry report. The officers contended that since serious allegations had been made against them, they had a right to access the document.
“The Applicant has not been made a party respondent and various allegations are made against the applicant and reliefs are claimed against the applicant,” their petitions read. Denying the allegations, the officers have urged the court to furnish a copy of the inquiry report.
Anna Shinde’s advocate informed the bench that the family was being threatened and sought police protection. The bench has asked State Advocate Prajakta Shinde to take instructions on the threat perception and inform the court on the next hearing date, February 5.
The inquiry report emphasised that the situation could have been handled more effectively and suggested preventive measures for the future. It also questioned whether the use of force by the police was justified.
The Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) findings revealed that Shinde’s fingerprints were not found on the pistol he allegedly snatched, nor was gunshot residue detected on his hands, the handcuffs, or his clothing, the report recorded.
