Justice Gill panel finds Gurdaspur police filed 3 false NDPS Act cases

CHANDIGARH: In a case of blatant misuse of power by the Punjab Police, Justice Mehtab Singh Gill-headed commission has found that the Gurdaspur City police station in-charge had in 2013 and 2014 got three false cases registered under the Narcotics Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act against a woman and her son. The commission has also found three more false cases registered under the NDPS Act across Punjab.

The commission, probing false cases registered in Punjab during the 10-year SAD-BJP government regime, has recommended criminal action against then Gurdaspur city police station SHO inspector Gurdip Singh as well as investigating officer ASI Satbir Singh under Section 182 (false information, with intent to cause public servant to use his lawful power to the injury of another person) of the

Indian Penal Code

. Payment of adequate compensation to the victims has also been recommended by the commission after recovery from both the erring police officials.

The commission submitted its 10th interim report to the Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh on Tuesday in which action had been recommended in 11 cases, including four falsely registered NDPS cases.

The commission found that the Gurdaspur city police station officials had registered one false case under the NDPS Act against Gurdaspur police line colony resident Sunita Kumari and falsely implicated her son Rahul Bhatti in two NDPS cases. Sunita had appeared before the commission and submitted that false cases were registered against her son Rahul Bhatti “on the asking of inspector Gurdip Singh who had a bad intention towards her.”

Taking up Sunita’s complaint, the commission found that the Gurdaspur court had acquitted Sunita and her son in all the three cases. “We recommend that adequate compensation be awarded to Rahul Bhatti alias Rahul son of complainant Sunita Kumari upon whom as per judgment dated 6.2.2017 of Sh Manoj Kumar, judge, special court, Gurdaspur, false recovery was planted by ASI Satbir Singh, investigation officer. It was planted at the instance of inspector/SHO Gurdip Singh.”

In another case, the commission found officials of police station Tibber in district Gurdaspur had registered a false case under the NDPS Act on June 6, 2014, against a resident of Prem Nagar village in Gurdaspur. But on examination of the sample of alleged drugs recovered from the accused, the chemical examiner said it was ‘Tramadol Hydro’ which does not come under the NDPS Act. The commission has recommended filing of cancellation report of the FIR to the trial court at the earliest.

The commission also found Jag Datt of Ahluwal village in

Gurdaspur district

was falsely implicated in an NDPS case on the complaint of one Sukhwinder Singh at police station Behrampur on May 23, 2015. The police station officials told the commission that untraced report has been prepared on which the commission recommended to file it at the earliest in the Gurdaspur trial court.

The commission also found one Balwinder Singh of Majitha in Amritsar district was falsely implicated in an FIR registered under the NDPS Act at police station Majitha on April 7, 2016. The Majitha police station officials told the commission that the SHO has prepared cancellation report of the FIR because the recovered material does not fall under the NDPS Act. The commission has recommended submission of the cancellation report to the trial court at the earliest.