A second postmortem in a custody death was first
declined and then acceded by Delhi High Court and in between two
positions came judge’s conscience. Combat Law Bureau presents the
report about the unusual turn of events during the hearing of a Writ of
Mandamus filed by two human rights lawyers
In a landmark order,
Delhi High Court ensured a second postmortem on the body of Hasib
Qureshi, a victim of death in custody in Bareilly District Jail.
Justice Vipin Sanghi had first declined to order another postmortem on
the body as he felt that the matter fell under the jurisdiction of
Allahabad High Court. Yet, the very next day he called parties and
reversed his own order on May 24. He observed that his earlier order
weighed on his conscience and so he spent sleepless night. He ordered a
second postmortem to ward off and avert what he called a miscarriage of
justice as time could be wasted in approaching Allahabad High Court,
causing several days old body further harm and decay.
Hasib’s relatives had pleaded before Justice Sanghi for another autopsy
as they suspected him to have succumbed to injuries inflicted in
Bareilly District Jail where he was lodged as undertrial. The jail
authorities are accused by Hasib’s elder brother Anis of beating Hasib
mercilessly and playing truant after his death in order to hush up a
clear case of death due to inhuman torture in jail.
Anis too had spent a few days in the same jail as a co-accused with
Hasib. This was after Hasib’s wife filed a case against them under
section 498 A/506 Indian Penal Code and Section 314 of Dowry Protection
Act at Faridpur police station in district Bareilly. Police arrived
from Faridpur on May 9 to take the two brothers in custody from their
west Delhi home. They were taken to Nangloi Police Station in Delhi by
UP Police, produced before a Metropolitan Court in Delhi before being
moved to Faridpur. The two brothers were remanded to Bareilly District
Jail on being produced before a magistrate in Bareilly.
Anis eventually was released on bail and rushed to Delhi where his
sister was awaiting her wedding. However, the marriage was broken since
Anis and his brother lost their reputation by virtue of being sent to
jail. Anis got busy in finding another match for his sister. In the
meantime his Bareilly-based cousin Nasir was instructed by him to visit
and take care of Hasib whose bail-plea was turned down by Bareilly
court.
Anis got a telephone call from jailer in Bareilly early afternoon on
May 18, saying that Hasib was unwell and so the phone number of the
prisoner’s local contact was needed. Anis not only promptly gave the
phone number of Nasir but also offered to come to the jail to see
Hasib. The jailer assured that the prisoner was not as serious as to
warrant Anis to visit him.
Soon Anis rang up Nasir to tell him to find out about Hasib. The phone
was picked up by Nasir’s sister Nasrin. She told Anis that Nasir was
already at Bareilly Jail, trying to meet Hasib for days. The jailer
again rang up Anis to say that Nasir’s phone number given to him was
wrong. Anis told the jailer about the talk he had had with Nasir’s
sister through the same number.
Anis left for Bareilly along with friends and family on May 18. The
next evening he was told by jail authorities of death of his brother
Hasib. At the mortuary, they were not allowed to see the body. A friend
who was able to peep in to find Hasib’s face to be bruised, forehead
swollen, blood stains on teeth, stiffed raised arms, feet limping and
sole twisted. The body was naked but for an underwear. A lone doctor
conducted the postmortem. The body was sealed and handed over to Anis.
It was brought to Delhi and taken to Nangloi police station by Haisb’s
incensed relatives. They held a dharna asking for a second postmortem
by a team of doctors in Delhi. The Deputy Commissioner of Police
arrived at the police station and the body was taken in custody. It was
kept at nearby Sanjay Gandhi Memorial Hospital. The family moved a
Metropolitan Court for a suitable order in the wake of bizarre
circumstances of Hasib’s death. It was declined for lack of court’s
jurisdiction.
The family contacted human rights lawyers Vipin Benjamin Mathew and
Jayshree Satpute who moved a writ of mandamus before the Delhi High
Court. Justice Sanghi heard the plea but declined to order a second
post mortem on May 23 since the incident pertained to the jurisdiction
of Allahabad High Court. The next day, however, his lordship revised
his earlier order and issued directions to
* The Medical Superintendent of Sanjay Gandhi
Memorial Hospital to preserve the body in the best possible manner and
to trasport the same to AIIMS on May 26, 2008 latest by 11.00 am.
* Constitute the medical board of at least three
doctors to conduct the second postmortem of the deceased Hashib Qureshi.
* The postmortem report should specifically indicate
external/ internal injuries, if any, on the body of the deceased
suffered by him post or ante mortem
* The postmortem has to be conducted on May 26, 2008
at 4 pm.
* The postmortem proceedings be video-graphed
* The original of the postmortam report and
vido-graph shall be preserved in a sealed cover by AIIMS till further
directions from the competent court looking into the death of Hashib
Qureshi
* The copy of the second post mortem should be given
to the petitioner
http://www.combatlaw.org/information.php?article_id=1176&issue_id=41
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