Sirpurkar commission completes inquiry into Disha encounter case

The commission submitted its report before the Supreme Court of India on January 28.

Hyderabad: Justice Sirpurkar Commission of inquiry constituted by the Supreme Court in the alleged encounter killings by the Cyberabad police of four persons, accused of gang rape-murder of a young veterinary doctor, Disha, in December 2019, completed its inquiry and submitted its report to the apex court, on Friday.

The panel was set up on December 12, 2019, to inquire into the circumstances leading to the death of the four accused in the case.

The commission, led by former Supreme Court judge Justice VS Sirpurkar and comprising former judge of Bombay High Court RP Sondurbaldota and former CBI director DR Karthikeyan inquired into the deaths in an encounter with the police of four persons accused of rape and murder of Disha (a pseudonym given to the victim).

According to the official sources, the commission has collected various documentary records including investigation records, forensic reports, postmortem reports, photographs, and videos pertaining to the incident.

The commission of inquiry held a public hearing for 47 days from 28 August 2021 to 15 November 2021, also examined 57 witnesses, and recorded their statements. Oral arguments from all the advocates including for the state of Telangana, the police officials involved in the incident, and other interested parties were heard.

It recorded the statements of key police officials including the then Cyberabad police commissioner VC Sajjanar, investigation officer Surender Reddy, Special Investigation Team (SIT) chief, Rachakonda Commissioner Mahesh Bhagwat, and the then Deputy Commissioner of Police Shamshabad Prakash Reddy.

The Commission held 16 virtual hearings and passed orders in 24 applications filed by the police officials involved in the incident.

As many as 1,333 affidavits from the general public, 103 affidavits from the police officials, witnesses, doctors, and other government officials were received. Voluminous records of the investigation by the SIT, Call Detail Records, medical reports, forensic and ballistic reports, and other records were also collected.

Apart from this, members of the inquiry panel had also visited the crime scene at Chatanpally in the outskirts of Shadnagar.

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