Jharkhand HC pulls up CBI over probe into judge’s death

Judge Uttam Anand was mowed down by an autorickshaw on July 28, an incident which sparked off security concerns in the entire judiciary

The Jharkhand high court on Friday reprimanded the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) over its probe into the death of Dhanbad additional district judge Uttam Anand, saying the agency “did not inform the high court before filing the charge sheet despite the bench comprising the chief justice monitoring the process”.

Additional Judge Uttam Anand died after being hit by a three-wheeled vehicle, in Dhanbad (ANI)

Expressing displeasure over the status report and the charge sheet filed on Wednesday, a division bench comprising chief justice Dr Ravi Ranjan and justice Sujeet Narayan Prasad observed that the CBI had failed to produce any evidence to back the murder charge against two persons arrested in the case.

“The bench observed that neither the agency took the court into confidence nor did it attach a copy of the charge sheet along with the status report. It said that such a thing was not expected from a professional agency like the CBI,” a lawyer who attended the hearing said on condition of anonymity.

“The bench also said that the agency has been filing a stereotyped report every week. The agency has failed to provide any evidence to establish the motive behind the alleged murder. This could ultimately help the two accused,” the lawyer said.

Judge Uttam Anand was mowed down by an autorickshaw on July 28, an incident which sparked off security concerns in the entire judiciary. The vehicle, which was stolen from Dhanbad, was recovered from neighbouring Giridih district that night. Two persons — auto driver Lakhan Verma, 22, and his accomplice Rahul Verma, 21 — were arrested two days later.

On Wednesday, the central agency filed the chargesheet against the duo under sections 302 (murder), 201 (destruction of evidence) and 34 (common intention) of Indian Penal Code.

During the hearing on Friday, the CBI said they filed the chargesheet after consultation with officials in the headquarters, and efforts are underway to establish the motive and the conspiracy behind the alleged killing.

The probe agency said it would submit a detailed report in this regard during the next hearing on October 29.

To this, the bench replied that if the headquarters was consulted, then it is likely that the court will summon the CBI director NAME for clarifications after reviewing the detailed report next week.

The Supreme Court and the Jharkhand high court took suo motu cognisance of the hit-and-run incident after CCTV footage showed the three-wheeler swerving on an empty road to knock him down.

The CBI took over the probe on July 31 after the top court said the incident had larger ramifications for the independence of the judiciary. The state government had also recommended an investigation by the central agency into the case.

In September, the central agency informed the high court that the judge’s death was not an accident and it was investigating all angles to unravel the conspiracy.

Several people have been interrogated in the last three months and lie-detector and psychoanalysis tests were also conducted on them, officials said.

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