New Delhi, May 8: The Delhi High Court will Thursday pronounce its verdict on two petitions seeking a CBI probe into the death of a constable who collapsed during an anti-rape protests here last year and quashing of FIR registered against eight youths for his death.
Justice G.P. Mittal, who had reserved the order on March 20, will pronounce the verdict.
The Delhi Police had earlier given a clean chit to eight people booked in constable Subhash Tomar's death during the anti-rape protests here in December last year but said that they were involved in destruction of public property near India Gate.
During the hearing, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Siddharth Luthra, appearing for Delhi Police, opposed the plea seeking quashing of first information reports (FIRs) and a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe in the death of Tomar.
"So far as the petition of eight accused seeking quashing of the FIR is concerned, this court should not quash the FIR just for the sake of quashing, as the FIR, besides the unfortunate death of constable Tomar, also relates to destruction of public properties, stopping public servants from performing their duties and breach of (prohibitory) order passed under section 144 of CrPC," he had contended.
Advocate Somnath Bharti, appearing for eight youths, had said the "manner in which the murder charge was first slapped against the youths and then dropped speaks volume about the way investigation has been conducted by the Delhi Police".
The police had booked eight youths - Kailash, Amit Joshi, Shantanu Kumar, Nafees, Shankar Bisht, Nand Kumar, Abhishek and Chaman Kumar - under section 302 (murder) of the IPC after Tomar had died on Dec 25, 2012 at RML Hospital here.
Advocate Gaurav Kumar Bansal, seeking a CBI probe into the case, alleged that there were contradictions in the versions of police, witnesses and doctors.
He said the police commissioner's statement was contradictory to the version of two witnesses, Yogendra and Pauline and the medical superintendent of Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital, where Tomar was admitted and later died.
Police had earlier said that Tomar was assaulted and trampled upon by the crowd at India Gate. However, two witnesses said that he collapsed while chasing the crowd and that he was not beaten or trampled by the protesters.
