Chhattisgarh government won’t arrest Nandini Sundar for now

NEW DELHI: The Chhattisgarh government assured the Supreme Court it would not – for now – arrest or interrogate human rights activist and Delhi University professor Nandini Sundar and four others in connection with a murder case.

The Chhattisgarh police had filed an FIR against the activists following the killing of a tribal earlier this month in the state’s Bastar region. The police said the FIR was filed on the basis of a complaint by the victim’s wife.

“We will not arrest them in this FIR. The court may record my statement,” Additional Solicitor General Tuhsar Mehta, who appeared for the Chhattisgarh government, told a bench comprising Justices Madan B Lokur and AK Goel on Tuesday.

Mehta handed over material on the basis of which the FIR had been filed. The bench declined to examine the documents immediately.“… when you say that they will not be arrested in this FIR, where is the need for us to look into the materials?”

Justice Lokur asked. However, after the state government’s assurance, the top court rejected Sundar’s plea to quash the FIR and grant an interim stay on the investigations.

The court permittedChhattisgarh to probe the case if any further material came up after giving four weeks’ notice to the rights activist,who has worked extensively in the Bastar tribal belt.