Uber victim, 12 witnesses told to testify again

Yadav had filed a plea to recall all 28 witnesses in the case, but the court has restricted the list to 13 main witnesses.

Shiv Kumar had allegedly raped a woman in Mainpuri in Uttar Pradesh last year and was involved in at least two more cases including molesting another woman. (Source: Exrpess Archive)

The victim and several witnesses in the Uber cab rape case will have to face cross-examination again after the Delhi High Court on Wednesday granted permission to accused Shiv Kumar Yadav to recall 13 witnesses.

The court of Justice Sunita Gupta accepted the argument given by Yadav’s counsel D K Mishra that the lawyer who had earlier represented Yadav during the trial was a “novice” and had not conducted the cross-examination of the witnesses properly.

Gupta partly allowed the plea of Yadav, who had allegedly raped the 25-year-old woman executive in December last year, while making it clear “not to repeat any question which has already been put to the witnesses in their cross-examination by the earlier counsel”.

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The court said that keeping in view the principle that fair trial is the main object of criminal procedure, it is the duty of the court to ensure that such fairness is not hampered or threatened in any manner. “Fair trial… is a constitutional as well as a human right which cannot be jeopardised under any circumstance,” Gupta said.

Yadav had filed a plea to recall all 28 witnesses in the case, but the court has restricted the list to 13 main witnesses, including the victim and the doctors who had conducted the medical examination of the victim and the accused.

The judge said that no adjournment will be sought by the lawyer of the accused on any ground whatsoever. It also clarified “that in case of any reason any witness is not available for the purpose of further cross- examination, his/her testimony shall be read in evidence as it is”.

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