The Supreme Court has refused to quash the trial in the murder case of former railway minister L N Mishra saying that proceedings cannot be terminated merely because they have not been concluded in the past 37 years.
One of the accused in the case – 65-year-old advocate Ranjan Dwivedi – had approached the apex court for quashing his trial on the ground of an inordinate delay of 37 years. Dwivedi was 24 years when he was made an accused along with four members of Anand Marga group, one of whom has died.
The chargesheet in the case was filed on 1 November, 1977 in a CBI court in Patna. In 1979, the case proceedings were shifted to Delhi after the then Attorney General had made a plea in the apex court.
The then railway minister L N Mishra was assassinated in 1975 in a bomb attack in Bihar. A bomb was thrown at the dais where Mishra was addressing a public meeting in Samastipur in Bihar on 2 January, 1975. He got injured in the attack and later succumbed in hospital the following day. Dwivedi is one of the accused who threw a bomb at the dais.
The apex court bench of Justice H L Dattu and Justice C K Prasad directed the trial court to conclude the trial as early as possible by holding a day to day hearing of the case. The court also directed the trial court not to entertain any plea for unwarranted adjournment.
Although the two judges concurred on the issue of dismissing the petition, they differed in their reasoning. While Justice Dattu blamed the accused for dragging the trial, Justice Prasad was sympathetic towards the accused but refused to grant any relief on the ground that the apex court’s two Constitution Bench judgments did not allow passing of an order in favour of the petitioner.
Delivering the judgment, Justice Dattu said that the delay in the completion of trial in no way reflected any systemic failure but was on account of judging of the case by the accused.
One of the accused in the case – 65-year-old advocate Ranjan Dwivedi – had approached the apex court for quashing his trial on the ground of an inordinate delay of 37 years. Dwivedi was 24 years when he was made an accused along with four members of Anand Marga group, one of whom has died.
The chargesheet in the case was filed on 1 November, 1977 in a CBI court in Patna. In 1979, the case proceedings were shifted to Delhi after the then Attorney General had made a plea in the apex court.
The then railway minister L N Mishra was assassinated in 1975 in a bomb attack in Bihar. A bomb was thrown at the dais where Mishra was addressing a public meeting in Samastipur in Bihar on 2 January, 1975. He got injured in the attack and later succumbed in hospital the following day. Dwivedi is one of the accused who threw a bomb at the dais.
The apex court bench of Justice H L Dattu and Justice C K Prasad directed the trial court to conclude the trial as early as possible by holding a day to day hearing of the case. The court also directed the trial court not to entertain any plea for unwarranted adjournment.
Although the two judges concurred on the issue of dismissing the petition, they differed in their reasoning. While Justice Dattu blamed the accused for dragging the trial, Justice Prasad was sympathetic towards the accused but refused to grant any relief on the ground that the apex court’s two Constitution Bench judgments did not allow passing of an order in favour of the petitioner.
Delivering the judgment, Justice Dattu said that the delay in the completion of trial in no way reflected any systemic failure but was on account of judging of the case by the accused.