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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | SC: Why has LN Mishra murder trial dragged for 37 years? by Dhananjay Mahapatra

SC: Why has LN Mishra murder trial dragged for 37 years? by Dhananjay Mahapatra

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published Published on Dec 16, 2011   modified Modified on Dec 16, 2011

The Supreme Court on Thursday wanted to know why trial in the murder of then railway minister L N Mishra, who wielded considerable political clout being close to then PM Indira Gandhi, in a bomb attack in Samastipur on January 2, 1975 was dragging in the lower court even after 37 years.

A 27-year-old advocate, who was arrested in the case and chargesheeted, is now a frail 64 year-old and has already suffered a heart attack. Of the 39 defence witnesses cited by him to prove his innocence, 31 have died and as many as 22 judges have handled the trial at various stages.

"The case is gravely prejudiced against the accused because of the lapse of time and death of witnesses," senior advocate T R Andhyarujina argued before a bench of Justices H L Dattu and C K Prasad which issued notice to CBI on why the case had dragged on for so long.

Other counsel for the accused M L Lahoty gave details of the stage of trial and sought a stay, but the bench declined and said it would rather ask the prosecuting agency what caused the 37-year delay. "We will find out if the delay was because of the prosecution not being vigilant enough," it said while seeking CBI's response in four weeks.

Andhayrujina said it was a fit case for quashing the prosecution case as the Supreme Court's direction given 20 years ago for day-to-day trial in the L N Mishra murder case was not honoured. "This is a shocking case of travesty of speedy trial," he said.

Role of Ananda Marg was suspected in the case and several people were arrested. The chargesheet was filed against several people, including advocate Ranjan Dwivedi and Sudevananda Avadhuta. The trial was transferred to Delhi by the Supreme Court in December 1979 after the attorney general alleged that Bihar government was interfering with the trial. Charges were framed against the accused in 1981.

Dwivedi was granted bail in 1978 but other co-accused got bail only in 1986 as the case kept meandering in the trial court. Dwivedi's main grouse is that CBI was adopting delaying tactics to defer a final decision in the case which alone would vindicate his innocence and honour.

"Even after 36 years, CBI is not satisfied and after closure of evidence, it has produced some more additional evidence to fill in the lacuna in the prosecution case through backdoor methods," he alleged.

Four years after CBI filed chargesheet, Justice V M Tarakunde had inquired into the evidence collected by the agency and perused other documents to submit a report on February 15, 1979 at the request of then chief minister Karpoori Thakur. Justice Tarakunde had opined for a fresh probe and release of innocent persons arrested in the case.

The petitioner said Justice Tarakunde had also reported about L N Mishra's widow having told CBI officer D Sen that she suspected Bihar politician Ram Bilas Jha for her husband's murder and was told by the officer not to go public about this as it would lead to "higher ups".

The case so far:

* Bomb thrown on the rostrum in Samastipur railway platform on January 2, 1975, during inauguration of broad gauge line, seriously injuring then railway minister L N Mishra who died the next day on way to hospital

* Accused advocate Ranjan Dwivedi was 27 years old when he was booked, now he is 64 and has already endured a heart attack

* He says efforts to prove his innocence suffered badly as 31 of his 39 defence witnesses have died

* The trial so far has been handled by 22 judges

* SC issues notice to CBI and wants to find out if the delay was due to prosecution not being vigilant

Times View

A murder trial going on for close to four decades is absurd. What makes it even more so are the specific details of this case. The man killed was a prominent Union minister. Further, the apex court had directed a full two decades ago that day-to-day trials be held in the case to ensure its speedy disposal. If, despite all this, the case still drags on, it illustrates just how badly our judicial system is clogged. Justice delayed by such a long time is obviously justice denied. When the expectation of delays denying justice becomes the norm, there will be some who take the law into their own hands. The judicial system must find ways of dealing with cases within reasonable timeframes if its credibility as a deliverer of justice is to be maintained.


The Times of India, 16 December, 2011, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/SC-Why-has-LN-Mishra-murder-trial-dragged-for-37-years/articleshow/11126884.cms


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