Dantewada: When SC imposed penalty on activist for falsely alleging that security forces massacred tribals

Dantewada. Considering all the documents and evidence, the court levied a penalty of Rs 5 lakh on Himanshu Kumar.

As the nation mourns the killing of security forces personnel on April 26 at Dantewada in a blast carried out by Naxal insurgents using an improvised explosive device (IED), the Supreme Court’s (SC) July 2022 judgment on false litigation against personnel posted at Dantewada assumes importance.

The SC not only imposed a penalty of Rs 5 lakh on social worker Himanshu Kumar, who had filed the litigation, but also permitted the government of Chhattisgarh to initiate proceedings against him.

Moneycontrol explains what Himanshu Kumar’s case was all about, why SC imposed a cost on him, and the Centre’s stance in this matter.

In 2009, Himanshu Kumar, a social activist moved the SC alleging that Chhattisgarh Police, Salwa Judum (group of vigilantes sponsored by the Chhattisgarh Government), and the Paramilitary Forces orchestrated a brutal massacre of the tribals in some villages in Dantewada district of Chhattisgarh. It alleged that 19 people were massacred by the security forces.

Kumar’s plea sought an enquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the alleged massacre and compensation from the government to the victims and their families for the extra-judicial executions, looting of their properties, burning of their houses, and other losses suffered by the victims.

In his petition, he contended that despite having filed First Information Reports (FIRs), the police did not take any action.

In 2010, the SC summoned the villagers named in the petition as victims of the massacre and decided to interact with them. This was to avoid any gaps in communication or misunderstanding. To understand them better, the SC tasked a District Judge of Tis Hazari court to take down their statements with the help of a translator.

The SC said, “We make it very clear that the District Judge shall proceed to record the statement only after being satisfied that the persons produced before him are free from any pressure and are capable of making statements freely without being influenced by any of the outside agencies/parties. The learned District Judge is requested to arrange for a videography of the entire proceedings.”

The case came up for hearing in 2022 after the central government filed an application to prosecute Kumar for perjury after investigations found that nothing alleged in the petition transpired in reality. While the case had earlier come up for hearing at irregular intervals, it never reached finality.

In 2022, the government contended that a plain reading of the statements of the villagers indicated that they had no idea of what was in the writ petition and for what reasons the writ petition was filed. The government asked the court to take a strict view of the matte and hold Kumar guilty of giving false evidence to the court with a view to protect the Naxal terrorists. It further argued that despite 13 years having elapsed, Kumar had not shown any interest in the investigations, which is evident from the fact that he did not pursue the case after having made the allegations against the security personnel.

The court noted that Kumar’s lawyer, after 13 years, said that the district judge did not record the statements properly. The court questioned Kumar as to why nothing was done about this since 2010.

The apex court further noted that the statements of the villagers destroy the entire case of allegations made against the security personnel. The court held that it was of the view that no case worth the name, for further investigation or re-investigation, has been filed.

The court further observed that looking at all the documents, it appears that the villagers were attacked and killed by the Naxalites, and there is not an iota of evidence against the security forces.

The court held that “In the overall view of the matter, we have reached the conclusion that no case, worth the name, has been made out by the writ petitioners for any further investigation, much less through an independent agency, to be appointed by this court.”

Considering all the documents and evidence, the court levied a penalty of Rs 5 lakh on Himanshu Kumar.

As regards the central government’s plea to prosecute Kumar for perjury, the court asked the Chhattisgarh government or the CBI to act on it, if need be.