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SIT told to visit TN for recording statements of witnesses
The PIL bench of the High Court at Hyderabad on Monday directed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) investigating the Seshachalam Hills encounter case to go to Tamil Nadu and record the statements of witnesses in the case at their home. The bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Dilip B Bhosale and Justice SV Bhatt was dealing with a public interest writ petition and petitions filed by family of the deceased and a petition seeking reconstitution of the SIT.
Hyderabad: The PIL bench of the High Court at Hyderabad on Monday directed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) investigating the Seshachalam Hills encounter case to go to Tamil Nadu and record the statements of witnesses in the case at their home. The bench comprising Acting Chief Justice Dilip B Bhosale and Justice SV Bhatt was dealing with a public interest writ petition and petitions filed by family of the deceased and a petition seeking reconstitution of the SIT.
It may be recalled that around 20 woodcutters were killed in an encounter. It is the case of the police that they were smugglers smuggling red sanders in the Seshachalam Hills. Counsel for the widows of the deceased woodcutters Vrinda Grover informed the court that the SIT team which recorded the statements from three witnesses Sekhar, Elangovan and Balachandran in Andhra Pradesh area behaved in a threatening manner. She said that whole process of investigation was raising doubts.
Vasudha Nagarj counsel for VS Krishna of Human Rights Forum (HRF) while questioning the constitution of the SIT said that the present head of SIT was Superintendent of Police in several districts and during his tenure several fake encounters had taken place and he had supported them.
She said that there was a need to constitute a fresh SIT by identifying and selecting each member keeping in mind their integrity and past record and headed by an IPS officer from the Union Cadre outside the State of Andhra Pradesh or in the alternative to make over the investigation to the CBI. Additional Advocate General of AP Srinivasan Dammalapati informed the court that the said witnesses were in custody of a third party that was intervening in the investigation process.
He said that the police from Tamil Nadu, translators and revenue officers were present when the witnesses were questioned and the whole process was video recorded. The bench directed the government to respond to the question of reconstituting the SIT and adjourned the matter by three weeks.
