Delhi HC quotes Floyd's 'I can't breathe' while ordering probe against police

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court, while ordering a probe into an alleged incident where Delhi police officers have been accused of assaulting two people, said that it is to ensure that no one has the chance of repeating the tragic words like George Perry Floyd's 'I can't breathe' when he met with a US cop's excess.

Justice Najmi Waziri asserted the law to state that the police have no right to beat up people even during interrogation under custody. George Floyd, an African-American, breathed his last after experiencing suffocation from the knee pressure of a Minneapolis cop on his neck that drew widespread outrage in May 2020.

Mohd Areeb Umar and Umair Siddiqui moved the High Court after no action on their complaint against police officers who were accused of mercilessly beating them up outside Turkman Gate, police station Chandni Mahal, Central District on January 25.

Justice Waziri rejected the police version that implied "immediately preceding occurrence" as the reason for the strict police action against Umar and Siddiqui.

The court also viewed that the initial inquiry into the incident held by the Inspector (Vigilance) closed the case as if nothing noteworthy or actionable had happened related to the incident while photographs and video footage showed the men were repeatedly assaulted by police officials who were in uniform and in civilian attire warranted a fresh enquiry.

"To inspire confidence in an inquiry, fairness of the procedure adopted and examination of the substantive issues must be apparent. This fundamental principle has not been observed in the so-called 'inquiry report'. Therefore, it is of no consequence," said Justice Waziri in the order.

It further said the punishment for an assault or a criminal act is to be determined by a court of law and the police cannot be a judge in its own case.