ORDER

Heard learned counsel for the parties.

2. Leave granted.

3. Through the instant criminal appeals, a challenge has been raised to the directions issued through the order passed by the Bombay High Court in Criminal Writ Petition No.400 of 2007 dated 28.02.2008 and 03.03.2008. The operative part of the order, which is relevant to the surviving prayers, is extracted hereunder:

“42. In the above circumstances, though the learned P.P. had strenuously tried to argue that the matter should be left to the concerned authorities to conduct the necessary preliminary inquiry and to take appropriate decision, with utmost respect, we are unable to agree with the said suggestion. We find that the Police Officers who were entrusted with the investigation in the case in hand, who were expected to conduct the investigation honestly, sincerely and to the best of their ability, have not only failed to perform their duties accordingly but unfortunately and shockingly their conduct reveal to be those of the persons acting with the sole purpose of shielding the real culprit and allowing him to go scot-free and there was not even an attempt to collect the evidence which was to their knowledge avail