Jharkhand High Court has taken suo motu cognizance of the killing of a district judge in Dhanbad while he was out for a morning jog, citing the case’s sensitivity. “A judge was assassinated. We need to find out whether it was an accident or a murder. Because it is such a sensitive case, the court has taken suo moto jurisdiction “Rajiv Ranjan, the Advocate General, stated.
Uttam Anand, an additional district and sessions judge, was killed on Wednesday morning while out for a morning walk when he was hit by an auto-rickshaw.
The high court has sought details from the police and the state government. “The courts want the investigation to be done properly, it is the main purpose,” Rajiv Ranjan also said. “The investigation will follow all the important points and we will examine them from different angles” he added.
After CCTV footage of the incident showed the auto-rickshaw deliberately swerving on an empty road to hit judge Uttam Anand, the Dhanbad Police have filed a murder case.
Two people who were allegedly riding in the auto-rickshaw at the time of the accident have been arrested. The auto-rickshaw was eventually found in the nearby Giridh district on Wednesday night. It is said to have been taken from Dhanbad.
“Two persons, identified as Lakhan Kumar Verma and Rahul Verma have been arrested and the auto was seized from their possession,” Amol V Homkar, inspector general of police (operations), said. “They have confessed to the crime. Further investigation will be done carefully,” Homkar added.
The Dhanbad Police have also formed a 14-member special investigation team (SIT) to look into the matter, which will be led by additional director general of police Sanjay Anand Lathkar. The alleged killers of judge Uttam Anand have yet to reveal their motive, according to Dhanbad Police.
The family of the judge has demanded a probe into his death by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). “The CCTV camera footage makes it very clear that it has been done as part of the conspiracy. We demand an impartial probe headed by a judge or the CBI,” Subham Sambhu, the younger brother of Uttam Anand, told reporters.
Vikas Singh, president of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) and a senior advocate, has also demanded an independent investigation by the CBI into the death of judge Anand.
According to reports, he was hearing a number of high-profile criminal cases. He recently turned down a gangster from Uttar Pradesh’s bail application, who is being held in connection with a high-profile murder case in Dhanbad.
