Zahiruddin alias Dabbo Gyasuddin Shaikh, 70, was arrested on charges of cow slaughter, his family told to first exhaust remedies under the BNSS
AHMEDABAD — The Gujarat High Court has refused to order immediate registration of an FIR in the alleged custodial death of Zahiruddin alias Dabbo Gyasuddin Shaikh, 70, telling the family to first exhaust remedies under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS).
Zahiruddin was arrested on May 18 by Ahmedabad Police in a cow slaughter case. His son, Tofik Shaikh, alleged his father died due to custodial violence after being physically assaulted and given unidentified substances in custody. The 70-year-old was taken to Sola Civil Hospital on May 19, shifted due to a lack of ICU beds, and died hours later. The family claims medical records and the postmortem point to a cognisable offence.
Tofik approached the high court seeking directions to register an FIR against police officials for the alleged custodial death.
Justice DN Ray dismissed the plea on Friday, holding that even in custodial death cases, families cannot bypass procedure and approach the court directly under Article 226.
Justice Ray observed that although the Supreme Court’s ruling in Lalita Kumari vs Government of Uttar Pradesh makes FIR registration mandatory when a cognisable offence is disclosed, it does not allow families to directly approach the high court under Article 226 if police fail to act.
The court also relied on recent Supreme Court rulings, including Sujal Vishwas Attavar vs State of Maharashtra and Sakiri Vasu vs State of Uttar Pradesh, which state that people must first approach higher police authorities or a magistrate if police refuse to register an FIR.
“Even if there is fear that police may not register an FIR against their own department, that alone cannot justify bypassing statutory remedies,” the court said.
The Gujarat government argued that no inaction could be claimed yet. The family filed the high court petition on May 21, but submitted a formal police complaint only on May 22. Police also said they conducted an internal inquiry May 20–22, including CCTV review and recording officers’ statements.
The high court allowed the family to pursue remedies under BNSS, including moving a magistrate to seek FIR registration or investigation.
Police allege Zahiruddin was the kingpin of an illegal cow slaughter operation. A raid reportedly recovered 520 kg of suspected cow meat and a live calf. He was booked under the BNS, Gujarat Animal Preservation Act, and Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act.
