The Uttarakhand High Court on Friday stayed the arrest of 26 individuals named in an FIR related to the alleged suicide of a farmer in Udham Singh Nagar district and directed the state government to file its response in the matter.
A vacation bench of Justice Ashish Naithani passed the interim order and listed the matter for further hearing on April 15.
The case arises from the death of Sukhwant Singh, a resident of Paiga village in Udham Singh Nagar, who allegedly died by suicide in a hotel room in Haldwani, Nainital district, on January 11. Prior to taking the extreme step, Sukhwant Singh had reportedly recorded and posted a video on social media alleging that he had been defrauded of nearly ₹4 crore in a land transaction. He also accused the police of inaction and siding with the alleged fraudsters.
Following his death, Singh’s brother, Parvinder Singh, lodged a complaint naming 26 individuals—including six women—as accused in the case. Based on the complaint, the local police registered an FIR and began investigating.
One of the accused, Kulwinder Singh, along with others, approached the Uttarakhand High Court seeking a stay on their arrest and also requested the quashing of the FIR. The petitioners argued that they had no involvement in the alleged land dispute and maintained that no personal or legal conflict existed between them and the deceased.
After hearing the petitioners, Justice Naithani granted an interim stay on arrest and sought a detailed reply from the state government. The judge fixed April 15 as the next date of hearing.
The court’s decision provides temporary relief to the accused while the matter is under judicial scrutiny, especially in light of serious allegations raised in the suicide video and the wide net cast by the FIR.
The developments in the case will be closely watched as the High Court weighs the merits of the petition and the government’s response in the coming weeks.
