New Delhi: The Delhi High Court has dismissed a plea by a woman seeking registration of First Information Report (FIR) in relation to her daughter Santosh Koli’s death in 2013 against former Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, Kumar Vishwas and other AAP workers, alleging her daughter was murdered in a political conspiracy.
Woman sought registration of FIR against Kejriwal, others under IPC, SC/ST Act
The woman had moved the High Court against an order of a trial court rejecting her plea seeking registration of the FIR under the relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and provisions of the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) (SC/ST) Act.
Justice Neena Bansal Krishna upheld the trial court order dismissing the plea for registration of FIR against Kejriwal, Vishwas and other AAP workers.
Petitioner asserted that her daughter was allegedly murdered pursuant to a political conspiracy
As per the petitioner, her daughter Santosh Koli was working in Parivartan Institution with Kejriwal who had formed the AAP and she met with an accident in June 2013 while on her way to attend a party meeting in Kausambi, Ghaziabad, and succummed to injuries in August. She asserted in her plea that her daughter, who was slated to contest the Delhi assembly elections on AAP ticket, was allegedly murdered pursuant to a political conspiracy and that she had filed a complaint with the police, but no FIR was registered for the alleged murder of her daughter and for other offences under the SC/ST Act.
A case was registered in Ghaziabad
A case was registered in Ghaziabad against some unknown persons on the allegations that Santosh Koli had been allegedly hit by unknown car while she was travelling on a motorcycle as a pillion rider on her way to attend party meeting at the head office of the party at Kausambi, Ghaziabad. After completion of investigation an Untrace Final Report was filed before the Ghaziabad court in 2018. Later, a protest petition was filed by the present petitioner and the court directed for further investigations.
No part of incident occurred in the jurisdiction of Delhi and therefore, no fresh FIR can be directed to be registered: HC
Justice Neena Bansal Krishna observed that the entire incident in which Late Santosh Koli suffered grievous injuries, which eventually proved to be fatal, had happened in Ghaziabad, Uttar Pradesh and no part of the said incident occurred in the jurisdiction of Delhi and therefore, no such fresh FIR can be directed to be registered with the Nand Nagari Police Station in Delhi.
“Once the FIR about this incident had already been registered, in which the investigations had been undertaken and when further investigations have already been directed on the protest petition of the complainant-Kalawati, the law does not permit the registration of second FIR on the same incident,” Justice Krishna further said while upholding the trial court order refusing to pass directions to Delhi Police for registration of an FIR in the matter.
No offence under SC/ST Act has been made out: High Court
Justice Krishna further said that neither any caste-based abuse or remarks to insult, abuse or humiliate have been uttered in the present matter, which is the most common offence committed generally against the victims under the SC/ST Act and no offence has been made out.
“The averments made in the complaint merely imputes to certain persons conspiracy to allegedly murder her daughter because the petitioner Kalawati and her family members, including the deceased-Smt. Santosh Koli come from the Scheduled Caste Community. Even if all the averments of the petitioner-Kalawati made in the complaint are accepted, there is no caste-based abuse or remarks to insult, abuse or humiliate which can be deciphered, except that the petitioner-Kalawati imputes motive on the named persons to have allegedly murdered her daughter because of their caste, which is essentially based on her hunch and has no basis,” Justice Krishna said while dismissing the plea.
