SC directs AIIMS to set up board to examine health condition of NewsClick founder
New Delhi, Feb 27: The Supreme Court directed the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) here on Tuesday to set up a medical board to examine the health condition of Prabir Purkayastha, the founder of news portal NewsClick who is currently lodged in Tihar Jail in a case registered against him under the anti-terror law.
A bench of Justices B R Gavai and Sandeep Mehta asked the AIIMS director to constitute the board and submit a report to it in two weeks.
"Taking into consideration all this, it will be appropriate that the medical condition is examined by a board appointed by the AIIMS director. The board shall also consider the jail records and complete medical history of the petitioner," it said.
The direction came after senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing in the court on behalf of Purkayastha, submitted that the report filed by the prison authorities about his client's medical condition was not correct.
Sibal said Purkayastha's medical report that has come does not include the situation he is confronted with in jail.
"We have no issues with an AIIMS' evaluation," he said.
Additional Solicitor General S V Raju said in that case, Purkayastha must bear the cost for it and asked why should he get special treatment.
The court then said, "Because he is your guest and in your custody. Mr Raju, there is a convict in Jodhpur who is being sent to the AIIMS every now and then and no expenses are being paid."
Sibal said if the State has some problem with the finances, "we will take care of it".
"I can personally contribute to the State. No problem," he said.
NewsClick's human resources department head Amit Chakravarty had earlier withdrawn from the Supreme Court a petition against his arrest under the anti-terror law -- Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
Earlier this month, a Delhi court allowed Chakravarty to turn an approver in the case lodged against the news portal under the UAPA over allegations that it received money to spread pro-China propaganda.
The Delhi High Court had, on October 13 last year, dismissed the pleas of Purkayastha and Chakravarty against their arrest and subsequent police remand in the case. Both were arrested by the Special Cell of the Delhi Police on October 3 last year.
According to the FIR, the portal allegedly received huge funds from China to "disrupt the sovereignty of India" and cause disaffection against the country.
It also alleged that Purkayastha conspired with a group -- People's Alliance for Democracy and Secularism (PADS) -- to sabotage the electoral process during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
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Child rape-murder: Hundreds protest on Mumbai-Bengaluru highway in Pune; traffic hit
Pune (PTI): Hundreds of people blocked the Mumbai-Bengaluru highway in Pune to protest the rape and murder of a four-year-old girl, leading to traffic disruption on the busy route for about four hours.
The girl's family members and other demonstrators placed the body on the road in the Navale Bridge area on Saturday evening and demanded stringent punishment for the 65-year-old man arrested in the case.
Several videos surfaced showing a huge traffic jam on the highway.
Later, the victim's last rites were performed at the Vaikunt crematorium here shortly after midnight amid tight police security.
The accused man, who works as a labourer and has a criminal record, allegedly lured the girl with the promise of food on Friday in the Bhor tehsil of Pune district. He then took her to a cattle enclosure where he allegedly sexually assaulted her and later killed her by hitting her with a stone, according to the police.
He was arrested based on CCTV footage from a private residence, which captured him with the child.
A case was registered against him under the relevant provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and he has been remanded in police custody till May 7.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Sunetra Pawar on Saturday met the family of the victim, assuring them of strict action against the accused and a fast-track trial.
Describing the incident as "shocking" and a "blot on humanity", Pawar said the government stands firmly with the victim's family and will ensure justice.
She also spoke to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and sought a fast-track court trial so that the accused receives the harshest punishment.
Deputy CM Eknath Shinde directed Pune rural police to gather concrete evidence to build a watertight case and conduct the trial in a fast-track court.
Efforts should be made to ensure the accused gets the death penalty, a statement quoted Shinde as saying.
