The Supreme Court on Tuesday asked the Uttar Pradesh government to provide protection to the witnesses of the Lakhimpur Kheri violence, in which eight persons, including four farmers, were killed.
The apex court asked the Uttar Pradesh government that why are very few witnesses in the Lakhimpur Kheri violence case when hundreds of farmers were present at the rally. The court made the observation while holding a suo motu hearing on the matter.
Senior advocate Harish Salve appearing for the Uttar Pradesh government told Supreme Court that out of 68 witnesses, statements of 30 witnesses have been recorded under and 23 persons claim to be eyewitnesses of the incident.
The court then said that there were hundreds of farmers in the rally and asked why only 23 eyewitnesses are there. "There were hundreds of farmers in the rally and only there are 23 eyewitnesses?," the Supreme Court asked.
The Supreme Court said that there was a crowd of 4000-5000 persons who are all local people and even post-incident most of have been agitating. "This is what has been reported. Then, the identification of these people should not be a problem," the apex court added.
The Uttar Pradesh government, in its reply, said that people have seen the car and the people who were inside the car.
The Supreme Court then told Uttar Pradesh government that if the eyewitness is more credible than a bystander then it is best to have first-hand information.
The Supreme Court bench further ordered the protection of witnesses in the Lakhimpur Kheri case. The apex court also directed statements of witnesses to be recorded expeditiously.
A bench headed by Chief justice N V Ramana asked the Uttar Pradesh government, represented by senior advocates Harish Salve and Garima Prasad, to record the statements of other relevant witnesses before judicial magistrates under section 164 of the CrPC.
"We direct the District judge concerned to entrust the task of recording of evidence under section 164 of the CrPC to the nearest judicial magistrates available," said the bench which also comprised justices Surya Kant and Hima Kohli.
The bench asked Salve to to convey its concerns to forensic labs and experts on preparation of reports on electronic evidence of the incident.
The court also asked the Uttar Pradesh government to file replies on the investigation on the killing of a journalist Raman Kashyap and one Shyam Sundar in Lakhimpur Kheri violence. And posted the matter for hearing on November 8.
A total of eight people including four farmers died in the violence that took place in the Lakhimpur Kheri district of Uttar Pradesh on October 3. Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Ajay Mishra Teni's son Ashish Mishra and 12 others have been arrested in connection with the incident.
(With inputs from ANI)
