SC to hear plea to probe death of judge in Sohrabuddin encounter case

The Supreme Court will hear on Friday two petitions seeking an independent probe into death of special CBI judge B H Loya, who was hearing the Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter case.

A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud agreed to list the petitions filed by Maharashtra-based journalist Banduraj Sambhaji Lone and Congress sympathiser and relative of Robert Vadra, Tehseen Poonawalla for consideration on January 12.

Both the writ petitions are listed for hearing before a bench of Justices Arun Mishra and Mohan M Shantanagoudar.

Advocate Anita Shenoy mentioned the petition by Lone for urgent listing. Poonawalla's petition has been filed by advocate Varinder Kumar Sharma.

The pleas demanded a fair probe into the "mysterious" death of judge Loya on December 1, 2014 in Nagpur where he had gone to attend the marriage of his colleague's daughter. He was hearing the encounter case in which various police officers and BJP president Amit Shah were named as accused. Shah was subsequently discharged in the case.

The petitions cited contradictory reports about the judge's death, sowing doubts in the minds of the people.

Suspicion about the judge's sudden death, which was then termed as cardiac arrest, arose after a series of news reports by Caravan magazine in November last.

PIL in Bombay HC

A PIL has also been filed in the Bombay High Court by a lawyers association seeking enquiry into events and circumstances surrounding the judge's death. The high court has posted the PIL for consideration on January 23.

There have been demands by various lawyers' bodies for an enquiry into the death.