New Delhi (ILNS): The Allahabad High Court on Monday asked the Uttar Pradesh Government for details of the efforts being made to nab an absconding convict who was active on social media.
The division bench of Chief Justice Govind Mathur and Justice Siddhartha Varma was hearing a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Abhishek Som which stated that Badan Singh Baddo, said to be convicted for life, absconded from custody on March 28, 2019, but no efforts have been made to arrest him.
The petition averred that the absconder has political connections and because of that no action is being taken against him.
The petitioner also placed certain documents on record to substantiate the fact that the convict is regularly operating his social media pages including the Facebook account.
The Standing Counsel appearing for the State Government stated that a Special Task Force has been constituted to arrest the absconding convict.
The court observed:
“Having considered all facts of the case, we deem it appropriate to have complete details relating to the efforts made by the State to ensure the arrest of the convicted absconder. Such details are required to be placed on record by way of filing a personal affidavit by the Principal Secretary to the Government of Uttar Pradesh, Department of Home Affairs.”
The court ordered that the writ petition be listed in the additional cause list on November 23.
The affidavit in this regard is required to be filed positively on or before the next date of listing, said the court order.
-India Legal Bureau