The Allahabad High Court has stayed the hearing of an ongoing criminal case against Tribhuvan Singh in the MP-MLA Special Court of Ghazipur.
A single-judge bench of Justice Dinesh Kumar Singh passed this order while hearing a Transfer Application filed by Tribhuvan Singh.
The petition under Section 407 of the Code of Criminal Procedure has been filed seeking transfer of trial from District Ghazipur to District Allahabad.
The applicant is an accused in Sessions Trial arising out of Case under Sections 147, 148, 149, 302, 307, 427, 120B IPC and Section 7 of the Criminal Law Amendment Act, Police Station Mohamdabad, District Ghazipur pending in the court of Special Judge, MP/MLA Court, District Ghazipur.
It is stated that the complainant in the said case is an ex-MLA from Mau Constituency. He commands unparalleled fear, terror in the hearts and minds of the public in general. He has tremendous influence in Districts Mau, Ghazipur and several adjoining districts and in fact entire eastern Uttar Pradesh.
It is further said that during pendency of the trial, five family members of the accused-applicant have been eliminated allegedly by the complainant and his men, including the nephew and brother of the complainant.
It is also said that at present though the complaint is lodged in Banda in respect of several cases pending against him but his brother is sitting MP from Ghazipur, his son is MLA from Mau and his nephew is also an MLA from Ghazipur. Whenever the case is listed in the court, hundreds of men, belonging to the gang of the complainant, would throng the court and intimidate not only the accused-petitioner but also the witnesses and even the court. The complainant and witnesses face constant threat to their lives.
It has been further said that in one of the such cases pending in District Court Mau, District Judge submitted a report before this Court saying that fair trial would not be possible in the said case because hundreds of men of the complainant would cause hindrance in the proceedings of the Court, whenever the case would get listed.
Considering the aforesaid fact and looking at the might of the complainant and the fact that brother of the complainant is sitting MP, his son and nephew are Members of the Legislative Assembly, apprehension of the complainant that fair trial would not be possible in Ghazipur, the Court deemed it appropriate to stay further proceedings, therefore, till further orders the proceedings shall remain stayed.
“Let a copy of the petition be forwarded to the District Judge for his comments. State may also file its response in the meantime. List this case after four weeks,” the Court ordered.