AMAR DUTT,J - (1.) THIS judgment will dispose of Criminal Misc. Nos. 28044-M, 28047-M, 31788-M and 35849-M of 1999, which have been filed to quash F.I.R./Crime No. R.C. 4(S)/97/SIU-V/SIC-II/CBI dated 5.2.1997 under Sections 364/342/302/201 read with Section 120 IPC.
(2.) THE F.I.R. in this case was registered by the C.B.I. in compliance with the orders passed by this Court in Criminal Writ Petition No. 524 of 1994 (Joga Singh and others v. State of Punjab and others) after the receipt of the report of an enquiry dated 24.5.1995 conducted by the District and Sessions Judge, Jalandhar on the directions of this Court into the alleged detention and disappearance of Constables Rajwinder Singh and Mukhtiar Singh and murder of Baljit Singh after they were picked up by C.I.A. Staff, Jalandhar on 31.8.1992, 30.8.1992 and 23.8.1992 respectively. The C.B.I. had, after taking up the matter, registered the F.I.R. and on completion of the investigation has submitted a charge sheet against 24 officials of the Punjab Police. During the pendency of the investigation, these four separate petitions were filed by the petitioners in which the report of the District and Sessions Judge, Jalandhar was sought to be assailed on the ground that they were never associated or summoned by him during the enquiry and the same was consequently against the principles of natural justice. It was also submitted that the Sessions Judge conducted an enquiry into two incidents, one relating to the escape from custody of Constables Rajwinder Singh and Mukhtiar Singh and second into the death of Baljit Singh. No specific findings have been returned in relation to the former while regarding the latter, no specific allegations were made against the petitioners and, therefore, the F.I.R. has been registered against the petitioners who are even not remotely connected with the criminal writ petition. It was also submitted that though the High Court had directed registration of the case against the persons arrarigned as accused in the writ petition, the investigation has implicated innocent persons without collecting any evidence. It is further submitted that the investigating agency has failed to explain whether Rajwinder Singh and Mukhtiar Singh were actually killed in an encounter or they were alive even now and, therefore, the F.I.R. and the investigations conducted thereafter in the incident of escape of Rajwinder Singh and Mukhtiar Singh do not disclose any offence against the petitioners. Furthermore, it was submitted that even if the version of the State regarding the complicity of the accused were, for the sake of arguments, to be accepted, then too, since the petitioners were members of police force who were acting in the discharge of their official duties, their actions would be protected by the provisions of Section 6 of the Punjab Disturbed Area Act, 1983 (hereinafter referred to as 'the 1983 Act') and no proceedings could be launched against them without the previous sanction of the Central Government. In the reply filed by the respondent, it was denied that the petitioners have been wrongly cited as an accused. It was submitted that definite evidence has been collected about the role of the various petitioners in the incident which had taken place on 5/6th September, 1992 in which the petitioners had killed Vijay Pal Singh, one unidentified person and shown that Constables Rajwinder Singh and Mukhtiar Singh had escaped from custody during the encounter with the militants. This report regarding the escape of Rajwinder Singh and Mukhtiar singh during the investigation was found to be false and the investigation has also revealed that no encounter had actually taken place and in fact Vijay Pal Singh was killed in a false encounter and two other persons, namely Rajwinder Singh and Mukhtiar Singh were falsely shown to have been escaped while they remained with the party headed by SI Ram Singh. In these circumstances, it was submitted that there was no occasion for extending the protection of Sections 4, 5 and 6 of the 1983 Act to the case of the petitioners because the version sought to be put forth by one about Vijay Pal Singh, another person died in the encounter, and Rajwinder Singh and Mukhtiar Singh having managed to escape has been found to be false.
(3.) I have heard the learned counsel for the parties.;