Hathras stampede: Supreme Court refuses to entertain PIL seeking probe
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain a PIL seeking a probe into the Hathras stampede that left 121 dead, and asked the petitioner to move the Allahabad High Court.
A bench comprising Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra said such incidents are “disturbing” but the high courts are equipped to deal with such cases.
"Of course, these are disturbing incidents. This (filing of PIL) is usually done here to make a big deal of such incidents. The high court is equipped to deal with this case. Dismissed," the bench said.
It asked lawyer and petitioner Vishal Tiwari to move the Allahabad High Court and disposed of the PIL.
Tiwari said the issue regarding the non-availability of proper medical facilities to deal with such incidents is a pan India concern and the PIL can be dealt with by the Supreme Court also.
The CJI rejected the submission.
The plea had sought the appointment of a five-member expert committee under the supervision of a retired apex court judge to probe the July 2 stampede incident.
The stampede took place at a religious congregation in Uttar Pradesh's Hathras district on July 2.
Over 2.5 lakh devotees had gathered in Hathras district's Phulrai village for the 'satsang' conducted by Baba Narayan Hari, who is also known as Saakar Vishwahari and Bhole Baba.
The Uttar Pradesh Police has registered an FIR against the organisers, accusing them of hiding evidence and flouting conditions with 2.5 lakh people gathering for the event in which only 80,000 were permitted.
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Bengaluru: Two arrested for allegedly defrauding house owners, tenants
Bengaluru: Economic Offences Wing of the Central Crime Branch (CCB) arrested a couple for allegedly defrauding several individuals by renting houses in the city and then leasing the same houses to others.
The accused were identified as Ahmed Ali Baig and his wife Muida Samdani Banu. The couple ran a property management company named Geo Homes Private Limited at HBR Layout, Bengaluru. They approached owners of vacant houses and flats through intermediaries, promising to manage the properties by finding tenants. However, after entering into rental agreements, the couple would lease the same properties to different individuals, thereby defrauding both the house owners and the tenants.
The scheme came to light when house owners, after not receiving rent payments for a few months, discovered that their properties had been leased to others. This prompted the registration of an FIR in April this year, at the Banaswadi police station against several individuals, including Ahmed Ali Baig, Noor Ahmed Ali Baig, Akram Pasha, Abdul Rahim, and Syed.
In June, hundreds of victim house owners and tenants staged a protest near Queen's Circle in Bengaluru, demanding justice and action against the accused. The case was subsequently handed over to the Economic Offences Wing of the CCB for further investigation.
After the arrest of the couple, a search is on for the other accused involved in the scam who are absconding.
