Coming down heavily on the state government and Thane police for failing to register an FIR in connection with the alleged fake encounter of Akshay Shinde—an accused in the Badlapur POCSO case who was shot dead while being taken to Badlapur from Taloja jail—the Bombay High Court on Monday constituted a special investigation team (SIT) to investigate the case.

Despite the court’s directions in January this year to register an FIR, no action was taken. In its order on Monday, the bench, comprising Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale, stated, “A refusal to investigate a crime undermines the rule of law, erodes public faith in justice, and allows perpetrators to go unpunished. The State’s reluctance to even register an FIR has left the petitioner [Shinde’s father] and his wife feeling helpless, forcing them to forgo closure over their son’s untimely death. Such negligence weakens public trust in institutions and compromises the State’s legitimacy. As a Constitutional Court, we cannot permit this and be mute spectators.”