Prayagraj: The Allahabad High Court on Wednesday (December 4) allowed petitioner to withdraw a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking an independent probe by a Special Investigating Team (SIT) headed by a retired High Court judge into the alleged incidents of police atrocities during the violence that erupted in Sambhal during a protest against a court-ordered survey of Shahi Jama Masjid.
A bench comprising Justice Ashwani Kumar and Justice Dr Gautam Chowdhary, while allowing the petitioner to withdraw the PIL, took note of the submission made by the counsel representing the Uttar Pradesh government saying that a judicial inquiry commission has been constituted by the state government to probe into the incidents of violence, Livelaw reported.
What did the PIL seek?
The PIL, filed by the Association of Protection of Civil Rights (APCR), sought a direction to the respondents to submit a status report on the number of deaths along with the cause of death in the aftermath of the Sambhal violence that ensued November 24 in Sambhal and in any other areas where the violence spread and call for a status report disclosing the names of those persons who have been detained and arrested by the police in relation to the violence since November 24 along with the First Information Report/statute under which they have been detained/arrested.
Violence erupted in Sambhal after court-ordered survey of Shahi Jama Masjid
Violence erupted in Sambhal after an advocate commissioner-led team surveyed the Mughal-era Shahi Jama Masjid following an order by a local court on a plea filed by the Hindu side claiming the mosque to be a a Harihar temple. As per the news reports, at least four persons were killed in the violence and several persons, including policemen, were injured.
Sambhal court on November 19 ordered survey of Shahi Jama Masjid
A Sambhal court had on November 19 allowed a plea filed by the Hindu side seeking survey of the Shahi Jama Masjid there, saying that it is probable that the report of the survey will facilitate the court in deciding the case and ordered ordering for the survey of the mosque.
Supreme Court directed Sambhal court to halt proceedings
The Supreme Court, while hearing a plea filed by the Committee of Management, Shahi Jama Masjid, Sambhal seeking a stay on the order of the Sambhal court, directed the local court to halt proceedings in the case and not to pass any order in the matter related to survey of the mosque and not to open any survey report till the matter is heard by the appellate court.
