A magisterial court in Kathua district of Jammu has ordered the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) to register a First Information Report (FIR) regarding the alleged custodial torture of two laborers from Punjab at the Basohli police station. Chief Judicial Magistrate Ajay Kumar issued this directive while addressing a complaint filed by the laborers, Sukar Deen and Fareed Mohammad, both from Chibber village in Pathankot district.
The court instructed the SSP to assign the investigation to an experienced and independent officer and submit a report on the actions taken within one week of receiving the order. The Chief Judicial Magistrate remarked that the police personnel involved appeared to have been cleared following a superficial inquiry, underscoring that proper investigations can only commence after an FIR is filed.
The two individuals were arrested on June 29 by a police team, led by Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Suresh Kumar, and were charged under several sections of the Indian Penal Code, including Section 132 (assaulting public servants), Section 221 (obstructing public servants), and Section 352 (intentional insult with the intent to provoke breach of peace), among others.
On July 15, a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed on their behalf, seeking contempt of court proceedings against eleven police personnel for allegedly ignoring the Supreme Court’s directives aimed at preventing custodial violence, as established in the D K Basu vs. State of West Bengal case.
Following this, the Jammu and Kashmir High Court took notice of the situation on July 21 and issued notices to the eleven police personnel involved, including Basohli SDPO Suresh Kumar and Station House Officer (SHO) Geetanjali.
