GUWAHATI: A Manipur court acquitted all nine police personnel accused in the 2009 BT Road fake encounter case in Imphal due to lack of evidence.
The incident of firing had claimed the lives of a pregnant woman and an alleged former insurgent, Ch Sanjit Meitei. Five others were also injured.
The police had alleged Sanjit fired at police commandos while trying to escape a routine frisking operation on the busy street. When photographs of the incident appeared in a magazine, Sanjit’s mother Ch Taratombi lodged an FIR with the police alleging that he was killed in a fake encounter.
In an order issued on Wednesday, Session Judge, Imphal East, W Tonen Singh said the prosecution failed to prove that the photographs published by the magazine were genuine.
“…the prosecution has totally failed to prove the photographs…as genuine by not producing the required Certificate provided under section 65B(4) of the Indian Evidence Act which is mandatory,” the court said.
It said these were photostat copies of photographs and as such, not admissible under the law unless proved by producing primary evidence.
“Whatever found in the depositions against all the accused persons cannot be taken as gospel truth in evidence,” the court said, adding the prosecution also admitted that the accused persons were doing their duties as police officers, head constables, constables and riflemen.
“…there is no other convincing oral or documentary evidence in order to show all the accused persons acted in excess while discharging their official duties on the fateful day…” the court said.
“…Due to want of prosecution sanction under section 197 Cr.P.C. and due to the lack of Certificate required under section 65B (4) of the Indian Evidence Act, all the accused persons are hereby acquitted of the present case. Their bail bonds are hereby discharged from today,” the court said in the order.
After the incident had triggered widespread protests, the state government transferred the case to CBI in 2010. The agency submitted a charge sheet in 2015 against the nine police personnel.
It was stated in the charge sheet that the accused persons accosted Sanjit with the common intention to cause his death, and led him to the store room of a pharmacy and shot him dead.