Maharashtra Government Challenges Court's Stand in Police Encounter Case

The Maharashtra government has filed an appeal in the Bombay High Court challenging a sessions court's decision to put on hold the findings of a magistrate who held five Thane policemen accountable for the encounter death of a school sexual assault accused. The case has generated significant legal debate.

The Maharashtra government on Wednesday lodged an appeal in the Bombay High Court, disputing an earlier sessions court decision to delay the magistrate's findings, which found five Thane policemen complicit in the encounter killing of a Badlapur school sexual assault accused.

The government maintains that the sessions court order is flawed and failed to consider the developments in the high court regarding the controversial encounter. Public prosecutor Hiten Venegaonkar told a division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale that the government seeks to overturn this interim order.

The move follows a reprimand from the high court over the sessions court's February ruling. At the heart of the controversy is the police claim that the accused snatched a gun and posed a threat, leading to the shootout, which the magistrate's report found questionable.