Supreme Court Dismisses Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind Plea Seeking Compensation for Mob Violence Victims
The court refused to interfere with an Allahabad High Court order directing the petitioner to approach the state government for relief.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear a petition filed by Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind seeking compensation for victims of mob lynching and violence. The case came up before a bench comprising Justice J.K. Maheshwari and Justice Vijay Bishnoi, which made it clear that it would not interfere with the earlier order passed by the Allahabad High Court.
The High Court had directed the petitioner to approach the concerned state authorities for the implementation of the Supreme Court’s guidelines laid down in the Tehseen S. Poonawalla vs Union of India (2018) case, which addressed the prevention and handling of mob lynching incidents across the country.
In its petition, Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind had sought comprehensive directions to ensure the enforcement of the preventive, remedial, and punitive measures recommended by the Supreme Court in the Poonawalla judgment. The plea highlighted the alleged failure of state governments to implement these measures effectively.
Earlier, in July this year, the Allahabad High Court had disposed of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by the organization, noting that each incident of mob violence is an individual matter that cannot be broadly examined through a PIL. However, the court had granted liberty to affected parties to approach the appropriate government authorities for necessary action under the Supreme Court’s directions.
In its petition, Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind had urged the High Court to direct the state government to issue notifications and circulars for appointing nodal officers in every district to monitor mob lynching cases and submit status reports. The plea also requested directions to the Director General of Police (DGP) to provide updates on criminal investigations into mob violence incidents from the past five years. Additionally, it sought ₹15 lakh in compensation for victims of a mob lynching incident in Aligarh.
The Supreme Court, while refusing to intervene, upheld the High Court’s order and advised the petitioner to pursue the matter with the state government as per due process.
