5 October 2023: A division bench of the Gujarat High Court framed contempt charges on Wednesday against four police officers who had publicly flogged five Muslim men in Gujarat’s Kheda district almost a year ago. The police officials had tied five Muslim men to a pole at Undhela village last year and beat them with a stick as crowd cheered.
Invoking Section 2(b) (civil contempt) read with Section 12 (punishment for contempt) of the Act, the division bench of Justices AS Supehia and MR Mengdey started contempt proceedings against the four accused for breaking “the law enunciated by the Supreme Court in the case of DK Basu versus the state of West Bengal.” The bench was hearing a plea to initiate contempt of court proceedings against 14 policemen allegedly involved in the incident of flogging at Undhela village in Kheda district.
During the Navratri celebrations last year, at least four Muslim men were allegedly detained illegally and publicly flogged by the police in Kheda on the pretext of maintaining peace and harmony. The victims Jahirmiya Malek, Maksudabanu Malek, Sahadmiya Malek, Sakilmiya Malek and Shahidraja Malek had moved a contempt petition against 13 Kheda police officers.
The four accused police officials are Inspector AV Parmar, sub-inspector DB Kumavat, constable Rajubhai Rameshbhai Dabhi and head constable Kanaksinh Laxmansinh.
The court observed, “Incident of flogging has happened in broad daylight before a crowd. Presence of (Kumavat) is not in dispute. (Kumavat) has not made any efforts that the applicants who are being brutally flogged in public view by other respondents are rescued; no efforts are made to stop the flogging. On the contrary, his presence in chowk with other assailants shows he accompanied other respondents and has played an active role in bringing the applicants to chowk from the police station and they were tied and mercilessly beaten.”
The High Court has asked the four policemen to file a reply on October 11 as to why they should not be punished.
