The Supreme Court has intervened in a decades-old criminal case, staying proceedings against a police officer accused in a 1989 rioting incident. The court expressed strong inclination to quash the case, noting the “extraordinary” fact that not a single prosecution witness has been examined in the 35 years since the FIR was filed.
A bench comprising Justice J.B. Pardiwala and Justice Vijay Bishnoi issued a notice to the Uttarakhand government, seeking their response to a petition filed by the accused officer, Kailash Chandra Kapri. The officer moved the top court after the Allahabad High Court declined to quash the criminal proceedings against him.
The case traces back to 1989, when an FIR was registered at the GRP Rambagh police station in Prayagraj. Kapri was charged under several sections of the Indian Penal Code, including Section 147 (rioting), Section 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), and Section 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace), alongside Section 120 of the Railways Act.
During the hearing, the bench was informed that of the five individuals originally chargesheeted, Kapri is the sole remaining defendant facing active trial. Two of his co-accused have passed away, while the remaining two were acquitted after the prosecution failed to produce any witnesses to provide oral evidence.
The Supreme Court highlighted the collapse of the prosecution’s timeline as a primary reason for its intervention. The bench observed that the lapse of three and a half decades without progress justified ending the proceedings.
“In the facts and circumstances of this case and more particularly, having regard to the fact that almost 35 years have lapsed, we are inclined to quash the proceedings only on this ground alone,” the bench stated.
While the court has signaled its intent to dismiss the case due to the constitutional right to a speedy trial, it has opted to hear the State’s perspective before making a final determination.
The matter is now scheduled for further hearing on April 29.
