Presume innocent unless proved guilty

If we analyse Vikas Dube’s entire saga, purely from legal angle, I would like to state as under:

Our entire medical Jurisprudence is based on the principle that

“ Presume innocent unless proved guilty”

The fact remains that none of the charges against Vikas Dube were proved yet. He was supposed to be put to trial for whatever offences were alleged against him.

Even a proved criminal does not loose Human Rights. He has to be given humanitarian treatment irrespective of the fact that he is a convicted by the court. In case of Vikas Dube, he was not convicted by any court so far. It is not the police who had to punish him or anyone else, rather it is courts which after trial could have punished if the offences against him are proved. Rather, it was otherwise in the interest of justice that he should have been interrogated and on his disclosure the nexus between the Criminal, Police and Politicians could have been revealed. But perhaps none of these people wanted him to speak any thing which could have called trouble for them.

The total case is like Bollywood story which everyone knows as to how encounter was done and who are all behind this. Nevertheless, his house was also demolished immediately and illegally, therefore, the last hope of any proof of his political bosses involvement in his criminal activities, is destroyed. In my 36 years of career of law as one of the distinguished Advocate, I have never come across any such provisions of law which authorises the police to take such a drastic step of demolishing the house of alleged criminal.

Whether it is demolishing the house or encounter, in both cases the needle of suspicion is pointed towards his political bosses.

The entire matter needs thorough investigation by NHRC in order to bring truth.

( Writer Dr. Romesh Gautam practice as Advocate at Supreme Court of India)