Telengana encounter: SC says HC order on preservation of bodies will continue

After the Telangana High Court declined to intervene in the petitions relating to Shadnagar encounter, the top court has cleared that no other court or authority will inquire into this matter during the inquiry by the commission. Also, it directed to preserve the dead bodies of the accused.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has said that the Telangana High Court directive asking the state to preserve bodies of the four accused, who were arrested in a case of gang-rape and murder of a veterinarian and were later killed in an alleged encounter, would continue till further orders of the apex court.

The top court, which appointed a three-member inquiry commission headed by former apex court judge V S Sirpurkar to inquire into the circumstances leading to the encounter killing of the four accused, made it clear that no other court or authority will inquire into this matter during the inquiry by the commission.

"However, the orders passed by the high court pertaining to the preservation of the dead body of the four accused persons shall continue until further orders of this court," a bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde said in its order passed on Thursday.

The high court had directed the authorities on December 9 to preserve the bodies of the four accused till December 13.

Earlier, the high court had on December 6 asked the state government to preserve the bodies till 8 PM on December 9.

The apex court had on Thursday stayed the proceedings pending in the high court and the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in the case.

The bench had said the commission, which also included former Bombay High Court judge Rekha Sondur Baldota and ex-CBI director D R Karthikeyan, would submit its report to the Supreme Court within six months.

Two petitions were filed in the apex court seeking independent investigation against police officers involved in the alleged encounter.

The bench was told that an SIT was inquiring into the cause of death of four persons, who were accused in the rape and murder of the veterinarian, and an FIR was lodged against them for attempting to kill police officials who had taken them to the spot where the woman's charred body was found.

The Telangana Police had earlier said the accused were killed in an exchange of fire on December 6.

The incident took place around 6.30 am when the accused were taken to the site of offence for the reconstruction of the scene of the crime as part of the investigation.

The four accused were shot dead on NH-44 near Hyderabad -- the same highway where the charred body of 27-year-old veterinarian was found.