SC turns down plea over Mulayam Singh Yadav's order to shoot 'kar sewaks'

The Supreme Court Wednesday dismissed a plea challenging the Allahabad High Court verdict rejecting a petition seeking direction to Uttar Pradesh Police to lodge an FIR against former Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav for his alleged order to open fire on 'kar sewaks' at Ayodhya in 1990. A bench comprising Justices Ashok Bhushan and K M Joseph dismissed the plea on the ground of delay considering the fact that appeal has been filed against the May 3, 2016 order of the high court.

The plea had alleged that on October 30, 1990, several 'kar sewaks' were killed in police firing at the temple town when they were taking part in a "peaceful movement" for the construction of a Ram Temple there. The plea was filed by a Lucknow-based man, who had in 2014 approached a trial court for a direction to the police to lodge an FIR against Yadav, who was the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh in 1990. He had alleged that the Samajwadi Party leader had given a statement in public meetings that he had ordered the police to fire on 'kar sewaks' to win the confidence of Muslims.

The trial court had dismissed his plea after which he had moved the high court challenging the order. In his appeal filed in the top court, the petitioner had claimed, "The high court failed to appreciate that in a huge public gathering, Mulayam Singh Yadav, has confessed/ admitted that he ordered to fire guns on 'kar sewaks' and he further admitted in the second public meeting that if he did not order to fire on kar sewaks then the confidence of Muslims would be broken."

(With inputs from agencies.)