DEHRADUN: The Uttarakhand High Court on Thursday heard petitions seeking a stay on arrests and the quashing of the FIR lodged following the suicide of Kashipur farmer Sukhwant Singh, who had accused police officials and others of foul play.
A division bench led by Justice Ashish Nathani denied immediate relief to the accused and demanded that the state government provide a detailed status report by Friday.
The court has scheduled a further hearing for the matter on Friday.
Sukhwant Singh, a resident of Kashipur, ended his life late Saturday night in a hotel room in Kathgodam, Haldwani. Before his death, Singh posted a distressing video on social media leveling serious allegations against several individuals, including police officers. Singh claimed he was defrauded of nearly four crore rupees in a land deal.
He also alleged that when he approached the police for justice, officials sided with the accused rather than helping him.
"The police, instead of acting on my complaint, resorted to intimidating and threatening me," Singh reportedly stated in his final message.
In the aftermath of the tragedy, two police constables were suspended, and ten others were transferred.
Following a complaint filed by the deceased farmer's brother, police subsequently registered a case against 26 individuals, including Amarjeet Singh, Divya, and Ravinder Kaur.
The petitioners, named in the FIR, argued before the court that they were falsely implicated in a dispute stemming from a two-party land transaction and had no connection to the suicide itself.
Their counsel pleaded for a stay on their arrest and the quashing of the FIR.
In response to the widespread outcry, the state government has constituted a high-level Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by the IG of the Special Task Force (STF) to conduct an intensive probe.
"Detailed examination of the facts mentioned in the video and email released by the deceased has been directed," an official source confirmed.
To ensure impartiality, twelve police personnel were immediately transferred to districts in the Garhwal Range, namely Chamoli and Rudraprayag.
The family alleged that property dealers had cheated them in a land deal, finalising a sale worth Rs 3.5 crore but registering a plot worth only Rs 50 lakh.
Two days prior to his death, Singh had specifically accused the Station Officer of Kunda police station and the in-charge of the Paiga outpost of corruption in collusion with property dealers.
(Assistance for those having suicidal thoughts is available on health helpline 104 and Sneha’s suicide prevention helpline 044-24640050)