SC upholds acquittals in TADA case citing lapses in recording of confessions

The Supreme Court has upheld the acquittal of six people who were charged with alleged roles in the abduction and murder of Kashmir University vice-chancellor Mushir-ul-Haq and his secretary Abdul Gani Zargar in 1990, citing procedural lapses in the confessions recorded under the Terrorists and Disruptive Activities Act that lapsed in 1995. “The legislature had reposed great faith in the fairness and uprightness of the higher police officials in the rank of SP and above while conferring the drastic power of recording confessional statements of the accused persons upon them making the same admissible in evidence subject to the fulfilment of the procedural safeguards.” The court said the procedural safeguards were given a complete go-bye in the case. “Recording confessional statements in a heavily-guarded BSF camp or in a JIC where the atmosphere for an accused would generally be daunting and overbearing cannot be said to be in a free atmosphere.” The bench said the officer, who recorded the statement of Mohammad Salim Zargar, claimed to have done it on August 14, 1990, the day he was produced before him. “It is thus apparent that since the confession was recorded on the same day, hardly any or no time for reflection was given which has vitiated the confessional statement,” said the court.