BHOPAL: The single member judicial commission constituted by the Shivraj Singh Chouhan government to probe the October 30-31, 2016 intervening night Bhopal Central jail-break and death of eight Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) men in subsequent police encounter has given a clean chit to the police.
In its report, commission headed by retired High Court judge SK Pandey has concluded that "the encounter on October 31, 2016 done by the police was reasonable under prevailing circumstances. The action of the police was in consonance of the provision of law under Section 41 and 46(2)(3) of the CrPc. The use of force resulting in death of the escaped persons was quite inevitable and quite reasonable under the prevailing circumstances."
The probe panel also concluded that the state government should appoint a committee to examine the security measures to stop repitition of incidents of absconding and escaping of persons from jail. The department of jail has no institution of its own to impart an effective training to its officers and staff.
The panel further concluded that on the line of State of Punjab, the MP government should endeavour to provide a training institute to the jail department. The policy of recruitment of officers and staff should also be strictly followed. The jail department should also be made part of the home department so as to maintain better coordination.
Earlier on Monday, the much awaited report of judicial probe panel on October 30-31, 2016 intervening night Bhopal Central jail-break by eight alleged activists of banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI) and their death in an alleged encounter with police a few hours later, was tabled in the Madhya Pradesh Assembly on Monday.
The Minister of State for General Administration Lal Singh Arya tabled the report of the single member judicial probe panel headed by retired High Court judge SK Pandey during the zero hour on the first day of five days monsoon session.
Eight SIMI men had allegedly escaped from the high-security block of the Bhopal Central Jail after murdering a jail guard Ramashankar Yadav on October 30-31, 2016 intervening night. All eight SIMI men who escaped from the jail were killed in an alleged encounter with police a few hours later on the outskirts of Bhopal.
The judicial probe panel was constituted on November 7, 2016 by the state government to probe the alleged jail break, their subsequent death in alleged encounter with police and related issues.
Importantly, the opposition Congress' which in the past had made the jail break and encounter a major political issue maintained a studied silence over the issue.
Instead, its legislators holding placards in the house demanded that the report of retired Justice JK Jain Commission on killing of five farmers in alleged police firing on June 6, 2017 in Mandsaur district be tabled in the house.
The commission's report has been submitted recently to the state govermment, but it remains to be seen whether the report is tabled in the state assembly during the present monsoon session or not.