Full Judgment Text
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CASE NO.:
Writ Petition (civil) 232 of 1997
PETITIONER:
S.S. AHLUWALIA
Vs.
RESPONDENT:
UNION OF INDIA & ORS.
DATE OF JUDGMENT: 16/03/2001
BENCH:
S. Rajendra Babu & S.N. Phukan
JUDGMENT:
J U D G M E N T
RAJENDRA BABU, J. :
L...I...T.......T.......T.......T.......T.......T.......T..J
In the wake of assassination of Smt. Indira Gandhi on
October 31, 1984 there were several killings of Sikhs in
Delhi and other parts of the country between October 31,
1984 till November 1984 which involved arson, looting and
murder. A Committee was constituted headed by Justice R.N.
Misra of this Court which made an inquiry and reported that
Sikhs killed in those riots were 3874 in Delhi , 127 in
Kanpur and 69 in Bokaro. Civil Writ Petition No. 1429 of
1996 titled Bhajan Kaur v. Delhi Administration was filed
in the High Court of Delhi for paying compensation to the
dependents of those killed in the riots after the
assassination of Smt. Indira Gandhi as the State had a duty
to protect the life of its citizens and the State ought to
pay compensation thereof. The High Court of Delhi by its
order dated July 5, 1996 held that in the expanded meaning
attributed to Article 21 of the Constitution it is the duty
of the State to create a climate where members of the
society belonging to different faiths, caste and creed live
together and, therefore, the State has a duty to protect
their life, liberty, dignity and worth of an individual
which should not be jeopardised or endangered. If in any
circumstance the State is not able to do so, then it cannot
escape the liability to pay compensation to the family of
the person killed during riots as his or her life has been
extinguished in clear violation of Article 21 of the
Constitution. The High Court, therefore, directed payment
of a sum of Rs. 2 lakhs with interest and also made a
general direction that this direction should apply to
similar cases also. Thereafter, this writ petition has been
filed seeking to extend the benefit of the judgment in
Bhajan Kaur v. Delhi Administration (supra) to the entire
country and for certain other reliefs. It is brought to our
notice that the number of persons killed in each of the
States is as under:
Nos.
Killed
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State
3874
Delhi
1
Rajasthan
3
Orissa
106
Haryana
2
Himachal Pradesh
120
Bihar
98
M.P.
260
Uttar Pradesh
9
Maharashtra
4473
Certain amounts have been paid to some of the dependents
of those killed.
Certain claims have been made in para 13.3 of this writ
petition setting out certain facts which need to be
verified. After this petition was filed notices were issued
to the Governments of different States and they have filed
responses in each one of those cases stating the steps that
have been taken by them in cases where there had been death
or other kinds of violence resulting in injuries or loss of
property. But in the nature of the circumstances of the
case, it is very difficult for us to extend the decision of
the High Court of Delhi in Bhajan Kaur v. Delhi
Administration (supra) to all the States without making a
detailed examination of the circumstances arising in each
case. Such examination cannot be done by us. Therefore, it
would be appropriate for us to direct the High Courts of
Delhi, Rajasthan, Orissa, Punjab & Haryana, Himachal
Pradesh, Patna, Madhya Pradesh, Allahabad, and Bombay in the
States of Delhi, Rajasthan, Orissa, Haryana, Himachal
Pradesh, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra
and Goa to deal with the matter in respect of the
allegations made herein in respect of the State falling in
its jurisdiction by treating this writ petition as a
petition filed in that High Court. These proceedings,
therefore, shall stand transferred to the respective High
Courts. A copy of the petition with Annexures and response
of the respective State Government shall be sent to the High
Court for appropriate action.
The writ petition stands disposed of accordingly.
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