NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court Friday directed chief secretaries and director generals of police (DGPs) of Maharashtra, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jammu and Kashmir, Haryana, Meghalaya, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand, and the Delhi Police commissioner to prevent incidents of “threat, assault and social boycott” of Kashmiris, including students.
The apex court has also sought a response from states where incidents of threat and violence against Kashmiris were reported following the Pulwama attack and directed their chief secretaries and DGPs to take “prompt” and necessary action.
SC also directed that the police officers, who were earlier appointed as nodal officers to deal with lynching incidents, would now be responsible to deal with cases of assaults on Kashmiris.
The directions were passed by a bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, which also asked the Union Home Ministry to give wide publicity so that Kashmiri people after facing such incidents can approach the nodal officers.
“The chief secretaries, the DGPs and the Delhi Police Commissioner are directed to take prompt and necessary action to prevent the incidents of threat, assault, social boycott etc against Kahsmiris and other minorities,” the bench also comprising Justice Sanjiv Khanna, was qouted in reports.
(agencies)