Bihar govt to file plea in apex court against acquittal

In 2011,an Ara court had convicted 23 accused,sentencing three to death and 20 to life imprisonment for killing 21 people in Bathani Tola on July 11,1996

A day after the Patna High Court acquitted 23 people who were convicted by a lower court last year in the 16-year-old Bathani Tola massacre case,families of the victims have expressed resentment,even as the Bihar government has decided to approach the Supreme Court against the order.

In 2011,an Ara court had convicted 23 accused,sentencing three to death and 20 to life imprisonment for killing 21 people in Bathani Tola on July 11,1996. Over 50 armed members from the now defunct Ranbir Sena had attacked the village,killing 21 people belonging to Scheduled Caste and minority communities.

The acquittal has brought embarrassment to the Bihar government,with Opposition parties taking strong exception to the verdict. The CPI (ML) disrupted traffic on the Ara-Patna and Ara-Sahar roads on Tuesday. Partys state general secretary Kunal said: It is surprising that Rupam Pathak,who killed BJPs Purnia MLA Raj Kishore Keshri for sexually exploiting her,gets life sentence for murder and 23 people accused in a massacre go scot-free.

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Complainant Kishun Choudhary of Bathani Tola said: We were content after the lower court verdict but now we are shocked.

The government has,however,decided to challenge the order in the apex court. Both Social Justice Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi and DGP Abhyanand confirmed this.

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Patna High Court

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