New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice to the Jammu and Kashmir Government and the Central Bureau of Investigation on a petition filed by 13 accused in the Srinagar sex scandal seeking transfer of the trial outside the State.

A Bench of Chief Justice Y.K. Sabharwal and Justice C.K. Thakker also issued notice to the Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bar Association and the State Government on a petition filed by the CBI challenging the August 11 order of the High Court which was partially stayed by the apex court on August 18.

The High Court on August 11 directed the CBI to hold custodial interrogation of all public functionaries named by kingpin Sabeena. The apex court Bench, however, said the CBI should not resort to indiscriminate arrest and should interrogate only such persons as the investigating officer might think fit and on consultation/instruction with the CBI Director.

When the matter was taken up on Monday, the Bench took exception to a resolution passed by the Srinagar Bar Association asking its members not to appear for the accused. The Bench said such a resolution was violative of the Supreme Court order. If there was sufficient material against the accused, their arrest could not be described as punitive.

Counsel's charge

Counsel for the Bar Association submitted that the CBI was deliberately not arresting the accused involved in the scandal because some of them were holding the posts of Cabinet Ministers or were holding senior posts in the State police department. He said some of the victims, who had been contacted telephonically by some of the accused, expressed a desire to resile from their earlier statements. The Bench directed the parties to file their response within three days and adjourned the hearing till September 4.

18 arrested

In this case, the CBI arrested 18 persons, including two sitting MLAs who were former Ministers, a Deputy Inspector-General of the Border Security Force, an IAS officer, a former Additional Advocate-General and two Deputy Superintendents of Police. The CBI also instituted a case against 14 of them in competent courts of law.

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