Hapur lynching: SC declines to pass order for filling supplementary charge sheet

The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to pass an order directing Uttar Pradesh police to file a supplementary charge sheet in the Hapur lynching case.

A vacation bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, however, asked the petitioner to file an application before the trial court hearing the matter to bring to its notice the statements of the victim's brothers recorded under Section 164 CrPC.

The top court asked the victim's lawyer, Vrinda Grover, to approach the trial court and inform it about the statements of Saleem and Nadeem.

The trial court will take a decision in accordance with the law, the apex court said.

On May 15, the statement of the two brothers was recorded by the police, Grover told the top court.

The apex court said that the trial court would decide over filing of a supplementary charge sheet after conducting further probe into the case.

The plea was filed by a survivor of the incident, Samaydeen, who demanded the setting up of an SIT (Special Investigating Team) for an "impartial" investigation.

On May 2, the Uttar Pradesh Police had filed a status report on the investigation carried out in the matter on Samaydeen's petition.

In June last year, Qasim, a cattle trader, was lynched to death and 65-year-old Samaydeen was severely injured in Uttar Pradesh's Hapur district after a group of people allegedly attacked them on suspicion of being involved in cow slaughter.

Mehtab, son of Qasim, had also approached the top court seeking direction for an SIT probe under an officer from another state.

The apex court had tagged the plea of Qasim's son along with Samaydeen's petition.

In September last year, the top court had said that the investigation in the matter would be conducted under the supervision of Meerut's Inspector General of Police (IG).

The apex court had also said that the IG Meerut will adhere and follow the court's judgment while conducting the investigation in the case.

The pleas had claimed that Samaydeen and Qasim were targetted and mercilessly assaulted by a mob of the majority community in the name of cow vigilantism.

Both the pleas had sought setting up of an SIT comprising police officers with "impeccable career records of integrity and competence from outside the state of Uttar Pradesh".

The petitions also further sought a direction to the Uttar Pradesh government to compensate the victim for his medical treatment.