Shimla, May 21 (UNI) The Himachal Pradesh High Court on Wednesday reserved its verdict on whether to transfer the Vimal Negi death case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), with a final order expected on May 23.
A single-judge bench of Justice Ajay Mohan Goel heard arguments for over three hours from Advocate General Anup Rattan, representing the state, and senior advocate R K Bawa, counsel for the petitioner.
During the hearing, Bawa pointed to serious discrepancies in the investigation.
Referring to a status report filed by Director General of Police Atul Sharma, he informed the court that a pen drive recovered from a constable, Pankaj, was found to contain 15,000 formatted files. The deletion of these files, confirmed by Forensic reports, raised significant questions about the fairness of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) inquiry, Bawa argued.
Justice Goel questioned the Advocate General on inconsistencies between various status reports submitted by different authorities, including the Additional Chief Secretary (ACS). Rattan responded that while the ACS report was based on witness statements also given to the SIT, the findings could not be treated as legally binding.
The AG further clarified that two separate SITs were constituted — one by the DGP to trace the missing person, and the other to investigate the alleged abetment to suicide.
The court observed contradictions in the findings of the SIT led by SP Shimla Sanjeev Gandhi, the DGP, and the ACS. It ordered that the sealed ACS report be returned to the state for official consideration, while also directing that a copy be retained in court records.
SP Sanjeev Gandhi reiterated before the court that the SIT probing the death is distinct from the one tracing the missing person and assured that the investigation is being carried out under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) to ensure justice.
Justice Goel, however, expressed concern over the lack of coherence in reports from the police hierarchy and emphasized that discipline and consistency are expected within the police force.
The court will pronounce its decision on May 23.
UNI ML SS