Over 125 people died in shootouts inside courts in 2 decades: Report

Delhi second most affected state after Uttar Pradesh

New Delhi, Dec. 25 (Delhi Crown): A new report by a legal reporting firm has revealed that more than 125 people died and over 250 injured in shoutouts, bomb blasts and other similar incidents inside courts premises across the country over the past two decades.

The report prepared by “Sync Legal” and published by “Live Law” revealed that there are serious security lapses inside the courts’ premises. It said that most number of shootouts and other similar incidents occurred in Uttar Pradesh followed by Delhi, Haryana, Punjab and Karnataka.

“There have been more than six dozen cases of shoot-outs and bomb-blasts, in and around court complexes, killing more than 125 people and injuring 250, in the past two decades alone,” said the report.

It added – “It is pertinent to mention that within the last 3 months there has been as many as 8 incidences of shootouts and blast inside various court premises throughout the country, with 4 of them occurring within a short span of just 15 days, pointing out at the serious lapse in security and making it a cause of great concern.”

It further stated that Uttar Pradesh and Delhi have had the maximum number attacks orchestrated in or near the court premises. Whilst there have been only a few attacks on High Courts, various district courts across India have suffered immensely on this count. The gravity of the situation is only heightened on account of such repeated occurrences setting an extremely dangerous precedent, added the report.

The data compiled by the report showed that 37 undertrials, 7 attackers, 15 advocates, 6 Police officers and 62 other persons had lost their lives in attacks on courts over the past 20 years.

In view of the rising number of such incidents inside the courts, the Delhi Police have unveiled its new plan and measures to enhance security in and around the courts.

District courts’ security will be strengthened to match that of the Delhi High Court, including the deployment of paramilitary soldiers and regular security audits.

The number of security personnel deployed both inside and outside the court will be enhanced and the number of police officers will be proportional to the number of visitors. All force deployments will henceforth be decided by the police headquarters’ security cell.

The technique of frisking and giving entry passes, similar to that of the High Court, would be made stricter.

The Delhi Police have advised to replace the current security equipment with modernized, high-resolution CCTV and monitors along with a 360-degree vehicle scanning system with RF Tag/Bar Code Reader facilities, baggage scanners, scanners for explosive and NDPS checking, boom barriers, and other such security measures.

The security arrangements for District and Subordinate Courts, as well as Judges, will be reviewed by a Protection Review Group (PRG). PRG members will assess the security measures on a regular basis. They also conduct security audits at these courts on a regular basis.