Jharkhand HC orders CBI probe into Judge Uttam Anand's murder
Directing the Jharkhand government to provide all documents, details and logistic support, the High Court also directed the police to ensure security is provided to all judicial officers in the state.
FollowJharkhand High Court has directed the Central Bureau of Investigation to take over the investigation into the death of judge Uttam Anand from Dhanbad.
In its order, the court directed CBI to start the probe at the earliest so that no evidence is destroyed.
Directing the Jharkhand government to provide all documents, details and logistic support, the High Court also directed the police to ensure security is provided to all judicial officers in the state.
The DGP has been asked to ensure that security is deployed at the houses of all judicial officers.
The Jharkhand government had initially formed an SIT to probe the case but later sought a CBI probe.
Additional Sessions Judge was killed after an autorickshaw hit him on July 28 while he was out for a morning walk. CCTV footage showed the three-wheeler suddenly swerving towards the judge, who was walking along the side of the road and hitting him. The vehicle did not stop at the spot.
The High Court also sought to know why there was a delay in lodging the case. According to reports, the FIR in the case was lodged at 12:45 PM despite the incident happening at 5.08 AM.
The special investigation team has not made any progress in the investigation despite arresting 17 people in the case, including autorickshaw driver Lakhan Verma and his aide Rahul Verma. The SIT has also questioned over 240 people in connection with the case. But it could not reach a conclusion. The autorickshaw owners have claimed that the vehicle was stolen days before the incident.
Media reports said that two police officers had been suspended by the state government. While one of the police officers was suspended for not taking prompt action with regard to the theft of the auto used in the crime, the other officer was sent on leave for making CCTV footage of the incident public.
