The police's Special Investigation Team (SIT), which initially probed the matter, arrested two people who were in the auto but the motive could not be ascertained.
HEARING THE case relating to the death of Dhanbad judge Uttam Anand for the first time after the CBI took over the probe, the Jharkhand High Court on Thursday pulled up the agency’s Investigating Officer for not being able to give a proper update of the probe and asked him to be thorough with the details.
A bench of Chief Justice Ravi Ranjan and Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad is hearing the case suo motu.
Additional Sessions Judge Uttam Anand, 50, was knocked down while on his morning jog by an auto-rickshaw that moved sharply towards him on an empty road on June 28. The incident was captured on CCTV and within hours, police announced a murder probe.
The police’s Special Investigation Team (SIT), which initially probed the matter, arrested two people who were in the auto but the motive could not be ascertained. The CBI, which took over the case on August 4, took remand of the two accused recently.
During Thursday’s hearing, Chief Justice Ranjan asked the CBI’s Investigating Officer what the update was in the probe and whether the SIT had handed over details pertaining to the forensic examinations.
The CBI told the court that the SIT had ferried the auto to Ranchi and an examination was being done.
The Chief Justice then said: “What did you get [from SIT] and from where did you start your investigation. Did the SIT give a report on whether human body parts like flesh or hair were found on the auto… If there was an impact then the body parts should be extracted from the auto for an examination at the FSL and matched with the deceased’s DNA.”
The IO replied: “The SIT had sent the auto in a truck to FSL… and in the next hearing there will be an update on everything.”
The court then pulled him up, saying, “The information is not on the tip of your tongue. You should be thorough with the details… We are not trying to demoralise the IO, we know that the CBI can investigate in a professional manner.”
Assistant Solicitor General Rajiv Sinha told the court to have faith in the investigation and the Investigating Officer. To this, the court said: “We had full faith in the SIT of Jharkhand Police too, but there was no outcome… Here [with the CBI] there is some progress.”
The court noted that the CBI could not submit in the Supreme Court many details, but there have been additions to it since it took over the case. The Chief Justice said: “We will not bring the details on record and let the updates be given in sealed cover.”
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