Akshay Azad
Early Times Report
Jammu, Mar 26: The Jammu and Kashmir Police are in news once again for wrong reasons, this time for keeping an accused-in murder case-in illegal confinement for nearly one month, without seeking his remand from a magistrate.
Farida wife of Zakir Hussain of Kheri Raipur informed Early Times that for the past one month, her husband has been languishing in the lockup of Chinore Police Post, in connection with a murder case registered on February 27 but so far police have not produced him before the Magistrate to seek his remand.
She claimed that her husband and four children were in her house on February 27, when her husband's friend Faquir Hussain (deceased) had visited their house for hunting along with a rifle.
"Following a phone call, I immediately rushed to my house, wherein my husband and children informed that Faquir Hussain (deceased) received a gunshot", she said.
"Faquir Hussain had just stepped out of the house along with his rifle to go for hunting in nearby jungle area but after only a few minutes, a gunshot was heard by my husband and children, who came out of the house only to find Faquir Hussain in a pool of blood", she claimed.
She said that her husband made a call to Faquir Hussain's brother, who in turn took the body to their residence and did not hand it over to the Police. "My husband had also gone to Faquir's residence but the brother of the deceased lodged a complaint against my husband and he was arrested by Chinore police post officials", she said.
She claimed that for the past one month, her husband is languishing in lockup of Police post Chinore without being produced in Court of law.
Incharge police post, Chinnore Vikram Manhas claimed that accused Zakir Hussain has been called for questioning routinely. "We call him routinely and let him go to house", he claimed, which was refuted by Zakir's wife Farida. " He has been in the lock up for past one month. Sometimes they allow us to meet him and some occasions we are told that we cannot meet him," Farida said.
On being asked why Zakir Hussain was not produced before magistrate and remand was sought, he claimed that if some accused was called for questioning and was not detained, there was no need of taking the remand.
Taking the reference of section 61 of CRPC, a High Court advocate Mohammad Shaqir Hussain said that section 61 of CRPC reads as, "No police officer shall detain in custody a person arrested without a warrant for a longer period than under all circumstances of the case is reasonable and such period shall not in the absence of special order of a magistrate under section 167, exceed 24 hours exclusive of the time necessary for the journey from the place of magistrate court".
In the present case, he said, confinement without taking remand by police from magistrate is purely illegal and the family of the accused should approach court to seek justice. |
