Terming the Hatras incident as “horrible”, the Supreme Court (SC) directed the Uttar Pradesh government to inform it by October 8 about the steps taken to protect witnesses in the case in which a Dalit girl was allegedly brutally raped and died due to injuries.
The apex court directed the Yogi Adityanath government to file an affidavit in this regard and also ascertain whether the victim’s family has chosen a lawyer.
The court observation came while hearing a PIL, during which the state government expressed willingness to refer the investigation to the CBI on the ground that fake narratives were being spread about the case with political motives.
The bench comprising Chief Justice S A Bobde and Justices A S Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian said it will ensure that the investigation is smooth in the case.
The top court (SC) also asked all parties to appear before it to give suggestions on the scope of proceedings before the Allahabad high court and how the apex court can make it more relevant.
The CBI probe in Hathras case will ensure that no vested interests will be able to create a fake, false narrative with oblique motives, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the court.
The state government told the top court that a probe in Hathras case may be conducted by the CBI under the apex court’s supervision.
The apex court said this is a horrible incident but it does not want repetitive arguments in court.
It is a horrible incident but the question is how many similar arguments should we hear? Please understand that there is no need to duplicate concerns in the court of law,” the bench said.
Court of law need not hear the same argument by every party. This is not a comment on the incident but please understand our point of view, it added.
The Uttar Pradesh government earlier in the day sought a CBI probe into the alleged gang-rape and death of the Dalit woman, saying it will ensure that no vested interest can create a fake and false narrative with “oblique motives”.
The 19-year-old Dalit woman was allegedly raped by four upper-caste men in Hathras on September 14. She died on September 29 at Delhi’s Safdarjung Hospital during treatment.
