Prayagraj : Allahabad High Court has directed the Uttar Pradesh director general of police (DGP) to conduct a discreet and independent inquiry into how an SUV, seized in an excise case, was allegedly taken out of police custody for a raid and later involved in a fatal road accident that claimed the life of a woman.
High Court also took strong exception to the police department awarding only “censure entries” to the personnel involved. “The award of a mere censure entry, without any apparent consideration of the gravity of the alleged misconduct, the consequences of the unauthorised use of the vehicle and the possibility of criminal liability, prima facie appears wholly inadequate,” the judge observed. The court noted that the incident was not a routine procedural lapse but involved the “unauthorised removal and use of a seized vehicle, breach of entrusted custody and conduct resulting in the vehicle being involved in a fatal accident”. “If seized vehicles are permitted to be removed from police custody and used without lawful authority, and the consequences are thereafter dealt with merely by imposing nominal departmental punishments, it would seriously undermine public confidence in the administration of criminal justice,” the court observed in its Sept 22 order.
The court directed the state police chief to complete the probe within eight weeks and submit a compliance report. Justice Anil Kumar-X observed that although the confiscation order suffered from no legal infirmity, the handling of the seized vehicle by officials of Ramghat police station in Bulandshahr reflected serious administrative lapses While dismissing a petition filed by vehicle owner Rahul alias Dharam Dev challenging the confiscation of his SUV. When High Court sought details of the action taken against the police personnel, it was informed that the then Bulandshahr SSP had closed departmental proceedings after awarding censure entries to the head moharrir and the two constables.