Nido Tania case: HC raises question over special court

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday raised questions over the jurisdiction of a special court conducting trial in connection with the death of Arunachal Pradesh student Nido Tania, asking how it could hear the case when the charges under the SC/ST Act against the accused were dropped.

“Whether a designated court, set up to hear matters under special acts, could hear the case once the charges under the SC/ST Act were dropped against the accused persons,” Justice P S Teji asked the CBI and the counsel for the accused persons. When the designated court itself has discharged the accused, how can it conduct the proceedings, the judge added.

It orally observed that the designated judge for trying the cases under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (SC/ST) (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, should not have kept the matter before it unless and until there was a specific order.

“The case should have been ordinarily transferred before an Additional Sessions Judge,” the judge said. The agency and the counsel for the accused persons told the court that the issue raised by it 

has not been challenged before any court.