Haryana High Court suspends sentence of former IG in custodial death case

Shimla/Chandigarh (The Uttam Hindu): The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Tuesday suspended the life sentence awarded to former Himachal Pradesh Inspector General of Police Zahoor H. Zaidi in connection with the custodial death of an accused during the investigation of the infamous Gudiya rape and murder case.

The court passed the order while hearing Zaidi’s appeal against his conviction, though the detailed order is still awaited. Earlier, on January 18, a CBI court had convicted Zaidi and eight other police personnel for murder under Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, along with other charges. On January 21, Zaidi and the co-accused were sentenced to life imprisonment.

Those sentenced included the then DSP of Theog, Sub-Inspector Rajinder Singh, Assistant Sub-Inspector Deep Chand Sharma, head constables Mohan Lal, Surat Singh and Rafi Mohammad, and constable Ranjit.

The case dates back to July 2017, when a 16-year-old girl (name changed, known as Gudiya) was raped and murdered in the Kotkhai area of Himachal Pradesh. During the investigation, police detained two suspects, Raju and Suraj. Suraj later died in police custody.

Medical evidence revealed more than 20 injury marks on Suraj’s body, and a medical board of AIIMS confirmed custodial torture. Following massive public protests, including violence and an attempt to burn down the Kotkhai police station, the then Chief Minister handed over the investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The CBI subsequently arrested nine police officers, including senior officials. Notably, in the Gudiya rape and murder case, a special court in Shimla sentenced the main accused Anil Kumar alias Neelu to life imprisonment in June 2021.