Bhopal: The Justice S K Pandey-headed judicial commission for inquiry into jailbreak and encounter of alleged SIMI activists dismissed a petition filed by representatives of the slain men for cross examination of all documents submitted by police and jail department. The commission, however, shared true copies of 25 documents they had asked for in a separate application.Sources said the police and jail department have submitted a lot of documents related to the case. There are many that cannot be given by the commission to the respondents since the case is still being investigated by CID, said a police officer privy to the information. Applicants have been allowed to inspect the documents as and when required and they have been doing so for the last many days, said sources.The commission has reportedly cited Section 8 of the Commissions of Inquiry Act, 1952, while dismissing their application for cross-examination of evidence. It says the commission shall, subject to any rules that may be made in this behalf, have power to regulate its own procedure.The Justice Pandey commission has also referred to a Supreme Court judgment — State of Jammu And Kashmir Vs Bakshi Ghulam Mohammad — while dismissing the plea, say sources. The SC had ruled: "The Commission would, of course, permit cross-examination in a case where it thinks that necessary. If the evidence on both sides is tendered by affidavits, no one should be at any special disadvantage".The apex court had pointed out in Bakshi Ghulam Mohammad's case that Section 9 of the Act gives the commission power to regulate its own procedure subject to any rules made under the Act. "The commission may decide its own procedure. One of the matters covered by the rules is cross-examination of witnesses. So the rules contemplate cross-examination as a matter of procedure and the commission is free to decide what cross-examination it will allow provided that in doing so it cannot go behind the rules relating to cross-examination," the Supreme court had ruled.This commission was constituted by the state government seven days after the SIMI jailbreak and encounter. It's a four-point probe to find out how the SIMI undertrials escaped, which officials/personnel are responsible for it, under what circumstances the alleged gunfight took place, and the authenticity of the 'encounter'.The Shivraj Singh Chouhan government had announced the judicial probe under rising pressure from the Opposition and rights groups. Till then, the state home minister and some Cabinet colleagues had rejected the need for a probe into the encounter.The alleged SIMI operatives had murdered a jail guard and tied up another before scaling two walls with ropes fashioned from bedsheets, police said. By a stroke of luck, the fugitives were spotted hiding in Khejradeo village, about 13km away, and were killed a few hours later. The commission will find out under what conditions the alleged exchange of fire took place and whether it was "rational". The commission will also recommend measures that need to be taken to prevent a recurrence.

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