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NEW DELHI: A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court on Tuesday stayed a two-judge bench’s order directing Maharashtra to set up a Special Investigation Team (SIT), comprising police officers belonging to Hindu and Muslim communities, to probe two crimes related to the 2023 communal riots in Akola. Appearing for Maharashtra, solicitor general Tushar Mehta told a bench of CJI B R Gavai and Justices K Vinod Chandran and N V Anjaria that police personnel lose their religious identity once they don the uniform, and a directive to set up the SIT based on the faith of members would violate the principles of secularism that governs the functioning of forces. He said the state is duty bound to conduct a free and fair probe and constitute an SIT – as was directed on Sept 11 by the bench of Justices Sanjay Kumar and S C Sharma. On Nov 7, the same bench gave a split verdict on Maharashtra govt’s petition seeking review of the part of the order where govt had been directed to choose police personnel for SIT based on their personal faith. Mehta said the CJI, being from Maharashtra, must be aware that the state has many competent police officers. “Without taking instructions from the state, I can say that the state would not object if the CJI chooses the police officers who would form the SIT for a probe into the two incidents,” he said. Staying the part of the two-judge bench’s order that was related to the composition of the SIT, CJI-headed bench issued notice to the petitioner at whose request SC had earlier passed the order. “We cannot pass any order without hearing the complainant,” the bench said. In deciding the review petition, Justice Sharma had said, “In the considered opinion of this court, as review and recall has been sought of the judgment to the limited extent that ‘it directs or mandates the composition of the SIT on the basis of religious identity’ requires consideration and, therefore, let notice be issued to the respondents, returnable within two weeks.” But Justice Kumar dismissed the review petition and said the directive for including police officers belonging to Hindu and Muslim communities in the SIT was issued because of laxity on part of the police to register FIRs and investigate the two crimes relating to the communal riots. Given the split verdict, the matter was posted before a three-judge bench.
