6 months ago
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The Punjab and Haryana High Court has suspended the beingness imprisonment of erstwhile Himachal Pradesh Inspector General of Police (IGP) Zahur Haider Zaidi successful the 2017 custodial decease lawsuit of an accused successful the pack rape and execution of a miss successful the elevation state.
Zaidi, on with 7 different policemen, was awarded beingness imprisonment by a peculiar CBI tribunal successful Chandigarh successful January successful the custodial decease lawsuit of Suraj, who was recovered dormant astatine the Kotkhai constabulary presumption successful Himachal Pradesh connected July 18, 2017.
Reportedly, a 16-year-old miss went missing successful Kotkhai connected July 4, 2017, and her assemblage was recovered successful the Halaila forests 2 days later. The post-mortem study confirmed rape and murder. Amid immense nationalist outcry successful the State, a peculiar probe squad (SIT) headed by Zaidi was constituted. Suraj was among six radical arrested by the SIT. In May 2019, the Supreme Court transferred the lawsuit related to the custodial decease from Shimla to Chandigarh.
Justices Anoop Chitkara and Sukhvinder Kaur connected Tuesday (December 24, 2025) issued directions for the merchandise of Zaidi, directing him to furnish a bail enslaved of ₹25,000. The tribunal bid noted a deficiency of motive and prolonged play of incarceration undergone by the officer.
In his plea, the erstwhile IGP sought the suspension of his sentence, claiming that helium was not contiguous astatine the constabulary presumption erstwhile the custodial decease occurred. He said helium was already connected a pre-sanctioned permission to execute the rituals of his deceased father.
"It appears that the injuries noticed by post-mortem conducted by AIIMS oregon usage of blunt weapons similar lathi, robust rod etc. and the injuries connected the sole constituent retired towards the accustomed brutal methods of the police. However, it was definite Zaidi was not contiguous successful the constabulary presumption astatine that time. He cannot beryllium attributed for injuries which were not caused successful his presence. Further, determination was nary motive for the accused to person caused the decease of Suraj," the tribunal bid stated.
The tribunal further observed that successful the entirety of these prima facie analyses, coupled with the play of custody already undergone, which is much than 5 years, the serviceman is entitled to suspension of sentence.
The HC noted Zaidi addressed a property league successful which helium claimed to person solved the rape and execution lawsuit consequent to Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) lawsuit for transgression conspiracy connected July 13, 2017. "The CBI’s allegations noted Zaidi claimed successful the property league of capable technological grounds to substantiate the apprehension of the six accused. To warrant the claims made by Zaidi, a conspiracy was hatched to elicit confessions. This communicative itself raises a doubt: adjacent if the investigators were capable to extract confessions arsenic desired, specified confessions could not person been construed arsenic technological evidence," it said.
Further, the HC clarified that the observations made hereinabove are lone for the intent of deciding the contiguous suspension application, and it shall not beryllium interpreted arsenic an look of sentiment astatine the clip of deciding the last appeal.
After Suraj's decease successful custody successful 2017, the past Himachal Pradesh authorities handed implicit the probe successful some cases to the CBI. The cardinal bureau past arrested Zaidi and different policemen successful transportation with the custodial death. The CBI charge-sheeted the accused constabulary officials for transgression conspiracy, murder, fabrication of mendacious evidence, demolition of evidence, torture successful constabulary custody for extracting a confession and mentation of mendacious records.
