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Supreme Court stern: Chhattisgarh govt assures not to arrest DU professor

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Special Correspondent

NewsBits.in

New Delhi/Bhopal/Raipur: The Supreme Court on Friday took a stern view of the Chhattisgarh government’s dealing of the Maoist situation and got an assurance from the state that it would not arrest or detain Delhi University professor Nandini Sundar till next date of hearing (November 15).

The apex court said ‘there is an aggravation in Maoist situation (in Chhattisgarh)’ and the government should take a pragmatic view and find ‘peaceful solution’. The bench of Justices Madan Lokur and AK Goel admonished the Chhattisgarh government while hearing a petition filed by Sundar seeking quashing of an FIR against her, and three others for murder of a tribal in insurgency hit Sukma district in the state.

The bench went to extent of saying ‘You (Chhattisgarh government) are not taking the (Maoist) situation seriously.’

Sundar, Jawaharlal University professor Archana Prasad and two activists Vineet Tiwari and Sanjay Parate were booked for murder of one Shamnath Baghel of village Nama allegedly by Maoists on November 4.

The FIR was registered by local Tongpal police on November 5 on the complaint of Baghel’s wife and also includes charges of criminal conspiracy and rioting.

Later the case was handed over to Crime Investigation Department (CID) on November 9.

During the hearing, the counsel for Sundar, Ashok Desai termed the FIR as astonishing given the fact that Sundar and others had visited the area in May and the crime had been committed in November.

Sources said that during the hearing, Justice Lokur asked the additional solicitor general Tushar Mehta (appearing for state of Chhattisgarh) whether Kalluri (Inspector General of Police Bastar range SRP Kalluri) was the one whom CBI had made accused.

This was in context of CBI charge-sheet on special police officers (SPO) and security forces in well-known Tadmetla arson case (where 160 houses in three villages were burnt down). Kalluri was the officer-in-charge of the operations blamed by the security forces on Maoists.

It was on Sundar’s petition that CBI presented its report to Supreme Court reporting security forces’ culpability in the arson. Sundar has been claiming that the FIR against her was a vendetta action by the Chhattisgarh police because of Tadmetla issue.

When the additional solicitor general said he wanted to submit something before the court in matter of the FIR, Justice Lokur that the action against accused (Sundar and others) should be stayed until next hearing, sources said.

The court then posted the matter for November 15 and assured Sundar’s counsel that the court would protect the petitioner if any move to arrest her in the duration is made.

(Photo courtesy: Infosys Science Foundation)