Concluding its submissions in the Supreme Court on petitions seeking an independent probe into CBI judge B H Loya’s death, the Maharashtra government Friday launched a scathing attack on the petitioners, stating that the “whole purpose” of the petitions is to “tarnish the image of judiciary and target one individual”. Meanwhile, the bench headed by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud on Friday reserved their judgment in the matter.
During the hearing, senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, representing the state of Maharashtra, told the bench, “Your lordships are at the apex of the Indian judiciary. And the Chief Justice is the paterfamilias. Don’t allow anyone to allege anything in the court of law about members of the judiciary…” Rohatgi made the remark after he summarised his submissions that the petitioners have levelled “serious allegations” against the members of lower judiciary and High Court, who accompanied Loya, when he was taken to hospital.
“Your lordships are not making a medical appraisal…you are looking at a sequence of events..The petitioner has argued the four judges are a suspect. Another petitioner says he wants to cross examine the judges. He has further alleged that the administrative committee (of Bombay HC) was acting in an unusual manner. These are not arguments for upholding the rule of law but it is for destruction of rule of law….they pointed fingers at two judges (hearing the case) that they belong to the same state. These are serious allegations against the judges. These are innuendos…It is an obligation for the CJI that the judges remain fierce and independent and dismiss the petition,” Rohatgi argued. He argued that the petition has been filed three years after Loya’s death “to target one individual”.
“The PIL has been filed after three years. The fourth year has been spent in reconstructing what happened and what could have happened. But the aim of these petitions is not to protect the rule of law but to target one individual …If an inquiry is directed, the media will have a field day again…,” Rohatgi argued.
Kaunain Sheriff M is an award-winning investigative journalist and the National Health Editor at The Indian Express. He is the author of Johnson & Johnson Files: The Indian Secrets of a Global Giant, an investigation into one of the world’s most powerful pharmaceutical companies.
With over a decade of experience, Kaunain brings deep expertise in three areas of investigative journalism: law, health, and data. He currently leads The Indian Express newsroom’s in-depth coverage of health.
His work has earned some of the most prestigious honours in journalism, including the Ramnath Goenka Award for Excellence in Journalism, the Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) Award, and the Mumbai Press Club’s Red Ink Award.
Kaunain has also collaborated on major global investigations. He was part of the Implant Files project with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), which exposed malpractices in the medical device industry across the world. He also contributed to an international investigation that uncovered how a Chinese big-data firm was monitoring thousands of prominent Indian individuals and institutions in real time.
Over the years, he has reported on several high-profile criminal trials, including the Hashimpura massacre, the 2G spectrum scam, and the coal block allocation case. Within The Indian Express, he has been honoured three times with the Indian Express Excellence Award for his investigations—on the anti-Sikh riots, the Vyapam exam scam, and the abuse of the National Security Act in Uttar Pradesh. ... Read More
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Judge B H Loya
