The Bombay High Court on Tuesday directed the State government to reply to a contempt petition filed by the mother of Khawaja Yunus, who allegedly died in police custody in 2003, against reinstating suspended police officers in the case.

On June 12, Khwaja’s mother, 72-year-old Asiya Begum sent a contempt notice to Param Bir Singh, Commissioner of Police and chairman of the review committee set up for review of suspension orders of various officers of the city police.

On June 6, assistant police inspector Sachin Hindurao Vaze and constables Rajendra Rajmani Tiwari and Sunil Vasant Desai took charge in the local arms unit and constable Rajaram Nikam resumed duty in the motor vehicle department. They were all suspended in 2004.

Khwaja, then 27, was arrested by the Powai Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on December 25, 2002, following the Ghatkopar bomb blast. Two days later, when his brother visited him in Mumbai, he found Khwaja weak and unable to stand. On January 6, 2003, the accused either died in custody at Powai or while being taken to Aurangabad.

The petition filed through advocate Chetan Mali quoted the HC’s April 2004, judgement, which said, “till date no disciplinary action has been taken against Sachin Vaze and three absconding police constables. We find from the record that the investigation conducted by the State has been totally shoddy and improper.”

The State government was then directed to suspend all the three constables and Mr. Vaze immediately, and start a disciplinary inquiry against them as they were prima facie found to be involved in the offence.

The petition also said the State government had moved court seeking to recall the order, however HC refused to do so.

The court had said, “Under these circumstances, we find no ground whatsoever to recall our earlier order whereby we had directed the State CID to treat the statements of eye witnesses Dr. Mohammad Abdul Matin Abdul Basit made before the learned Special Judge under Prevention of Terrorism Act as FIR and register a separate case for the offences under Sections 302 (punishment for murder), 201 (causing disappearance of evidence of offence, or giving false information to screen offender) of the Indian Penal Code.

A Division Bench of justices S.S. Shinde and Abhay Ahuja adjourned the matter to July 3.