By Jose Kavi

New Delhi, Oct. 7, 2021: Human rights activists on October 7 welcomed the Supreme Court giving the Uttar Pradesh government 24 hours to file a report on the killing of farmers in the northern Indian state four days ago.

A bench led by Chief Justice of India N V Ramana said the status report should contain details of those killed in the October 3 incident, identify the accused in the First Information Report and whether they were arrested.

Four farmers were among eight persons killed and some 15 severely wounded when a car, allegedly part of a convoy of a federal minister’s son, ran over them at Tikunia village in Lakhimpur Kheri district.

The farmers had gathered there to protest against three contentious farm laws the parliament passed in September 2020. They alleged that the car that mowed down the protesters was driven by the minister’s son.

The apex court’s intervention is “certainly a step in the right direction;” says Jesuit human rights and peace activist Father Cedric Prakash.

However, he voiced concern over the court not demanding the suspension or the dismissal of the erring police officers and other government officials, who failed to arrest those responsible for the killing even after four days.

In a late night development on October 7, the minister’s son was asked to appear at the Reserve Police Lines in Lakhimpur Kheri at 10 pm next day.

The police have arrested two persons and issued a summon to Ashish Mishra, the minister’s son, for questioning in connection with the Lakhimpur Kheri incident.

Father Prakash says what happened at Lakhimpur Kheri October 3 “should make any human being hang one’s head in shame. Videos have gone viral clearly showing how a four-wheeler and a couple of other vehicles which followed, mowed down from behind, a group of protesting farmers, who were walking silently and peacefully.”

According to him, the minister’s son was apparently responsible for “the heinous crime.”

The court hearing will continue October 8.

“The nation and particularly human rights defenders will be waiting to see, if the Supreme Court does what is expected from them in the name of justice and will not succumb to the pressures from the anti-people fascist regime,” Father Prakash told Matters India,

Father Irudhaya Jothi, another Jesuit activist, says Chief Justice Ramana has “come as a silver lining in the thick, black and poisonous cloud today.”

The priest, who works in the northern Indian state of Tripura, said he was turning “pessimist and angry” amid social media reports of similar “scary incidences of violence from different parts of the country on a daily basis.”

The chief justice “is our only hope” as he proves a threat to “the toxic mixture of arrogant rightwing politicians, who use ultra Hindutva ideologies conveniently to polarize citizens.”

Father Jothi also accuses the politicians of selling out the nation’s property and resources to a few corporates “who in turn use, misuse and abuse the administration to their advantage to eliminate the innocent citizens.”

Meanwhile the court has also ordered the state government to provide immediate medical care for the mother of a 19-year-old boy who was among the killed in the incident.

“While hearing this case now we got a message that the mother of one of people who died is in a state of shock over the loss of her son and needs immediate medical attention… We want you to get her admitted at the nearest hospital,” the court addressed Uttar Pradesh Additional Advocate General Garima Prashad, for the state.

Prashad , who agreed to comply with order immediately, described the Lakhimpur Kheri incident as “extreme, unfortunate.”

While the chief justice said the bench also felt “the same way,” Justice Surya Kant, another judge asked the state government, “But we want to know who are the accused in the FIR and whether they have been arrested or not.”

Prashad said the state government had constituted a Special Investigating Team and a judicial inquiry had begun. An FIR had been registered and the investigation was on, she added.

To this, the chief justice responded, “But the grievance here is your investigation is not proper.”

The court hearing comes on the same day when news channels aired videos reportedly of the Lakhimpur Kheri incident.

The hearing of before the CJI’s Bench came three days after another bench lashed out at farmers’ bodies, linking their year-long protests against farm laws to the Lakhimpur Kheri violence.

The Hindu newspaper reported that the bench led by Justice A M Khanwilkar had said that “nobody takes responsibility” when incidents like in Lakhimpur Kheri occurs.

“When such incidents happen, causing deaths, loss to property and damage, nobody takes responsibility,” Justice Khanwilkar observed October 4.

The two arrested have been identified as Luvkush of Banveerpur and Ashish Pandey of Taranagar, mentioned in the FIR lodged by farmers. They had also identified six accused.

The United Farmers Front plans to hold hold its general body meeting at the Singhu border on October 8 to decide on the next course of action.