Badlapur encounter: Parents of victim tell Bombay High Court they don't want to pursue case

The parents of Akshay Shinde, who was shot dead in an alleged encounter by Thane police last year, on Thursday told the Bombay High Court that they no longer wish to pursue their petition seeking a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into their son's death.."Stop the case," they urged the Court.A Bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale asked whether they were under any pressure to withdraw the case. The parents responded that they were not under any pressure, but were tired of running around for the case. The Court, however, orally remarked that it cannot "close it like this" as a lot has happened in the case. .The petition was filed by Shinde’s father, seeking an SIT investigation into his son's death. Last month, a magisterial inquiry report found five Thane police officers responsible for the killing.These officers, who were present when Shinde was shot in September last year, had claimed that he snatched a gun from a constable and injured him, forcing another constable to shoot him.However, the magistrate’s report, submitted to the Bombay High Court in a sealed cover, indicated that the incident occurred in a moving vehicle and that the police could have "easily handled the situation" without resorting to force..During Thursday’s hearing, the Court questioned the State on why no first information report (FIR) had been filed against the officers indicted by the magistrate’s report. Special Public Prosecutor Amit Desai, appearing for the State, submitted that an independent investigation by the State CID was still ongoing.He added that the the State intends to send the additional materials collected by the magistrate to a judicial commission set up in October 2024 The commission headed by former Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court, Justice Dilip Bhosale was set up to look into the encounter and find out whether any person/organisation is responsible for the encounter..Desai argued that a magisterial inquiry's scope is limited to determining the cause of death and not assigning responsibility, making it non-binding on the State. "Magisterial enquiry is for the cause of death... It's a limited enquiry... He is not supposed to go into who is responsible. You need powers of investigation to look into every aspect of the matter. A magistrate does not have the powers of investigation." He further contended that since the case involved a custodial death, an FIR should only be filed if there was "unimpeachable evidence," as per Supreme Court precedents.However, the Court reminded the State that once an Accidental Death Report (ADR) had been filed, it had to be taken to a logical end, and an FIR needed to be registered. "Commission of enquiry is a parallel thing, but as far as ADR is concerned, it has to be taken to a logical end. Further, the court report can't be on paper without action. It's a full-fledged report with statements...Is the state not duty-bound to register an FIR?".Desai maintained that it was not possible to act on the ADR without a proper investigation.The parents’ counsel questioned why an FIR had been filed against Shinde based on some information while the State was unwilling to register an FIR against the officers despite a magistrate’s report pointing towards their guilt. This, according to him, was a clear discrimination between poor and police.The Court indicated that it will pass an interim order regarding this aspect..It also allowed an application filed by five of the cops seeking access to the magisterial inquiry report which indicts them. The report must be furnished to them within a week..Shinde, who was accused of sexually assaulting two minor girls in a kindergarten, was shot dead by the police after he allegedly tried to take a police officer's gun while being transported from jail to court..Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.