The CBI on Tuesday opposed a plea by two accused in a 1984 anti-Sikh riots case to transfer the case to Rohini court, citing territorial jurisdiction. The two face charges along with senior Congress leader Sajjan Kumar. Opposing the plea, the CBI stated that “timing” and “intent” of filing the application raises “eyebrows”.
CBI counsel D P Singh told the court of District Judge Talwant Singh, “Timing of the application for transfer of the ’84 riots case is not a question about delaying the trial, but is a question of intent.
No such plea was filed earlier. There is malice behind the move and raises eyebrows.”
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The CBI also opposed the transfer plea on the grounds that the plea is not being moved as per the established procedure as laid down in the criminal procedure code.
“The CrPC is the procedure to be followed in criminal cases. In case of transfer, there are sections 407 (power of High Court to transfer cases) and 408 (power of Sessions Judge to transfer cases and appeals) of the CrPC. But counsels have not mentioned Section 407 or 408 CrPC. Just territorial jurisdiction is not a ground to seek transfer of case,” the CBI counsel said.
The transfer plea was moved by accused Brahmanand Gupta and Peeriya. They wanted the case transferred from Karkardooma district court to Rohini district court on the ground of jurisdiction. Congress leader Sajjan Kumar, Gupta, Peeriya and Ved Prakash are facing trial on charges of murder and rioting in connection with the case of killing of one Surjit Singh in Sultanpuri.
The court is currently recording statements of prosecution witnesses. The trial in the case had commenced on January 10, 2014.
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Advocate Anil Kumar Sharma, appearing for the two accused, argued that according to the 2013 notification and orders of the Delhi High Court, the district judge should transfer the case to the district concerned. “The case needs to be transferred to its respective district — Rohini — for want of jurisdiction as the alleged occurrence pertains to Sultanpuri area and is not in the jurisdiction of this court…,” he said.
The court has fixed the case to January 14 when it would take up submissions of accused Ved Prakash, whose counsel had sought time to file a similar plea.
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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