NEW DELHI – The Supreme Court on Thursday ordered the transfer of a hit-and-run case allegedly involving a probationer judicial officer from a court in Punjab to the Rohini trial court in the National Capital.
A Bench led by Justice Surya Kant passed the order after the family of the deceased raised serious allegations of bias in the ongoing trial, given the accused’s status as a judicial officer. The case was pending at the stage of framing of charges before the judicial magistrate court in Phagwara, Punjab.
The wife of the deceased has claimed that her husband died in February of this year due to a hit-and-run accident involving a car belonging to the judicial officer, who is currently posted in the Hoshiarpur district of Punjab.
During the hearing, the lawyer representing the judicial officer initially suggested transferring the trial to Noida, Uttar Pradesh, citing the victim’s sister-in-law was a practicing advocate in Delhi, but stated no objection to transferring it out of Punjab. However, the Bench decided to transfer the trial to a court of Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Rohini, in Delhi.
In a related move, the apex court also transferred another case filed by the victim’s wife, who had sought the transfer of the investigation from the Punjab Police to the CBI. The Bench specified that if any further investigation is required in the matter, it shall be conducted by the Delhi Police. Additionally, the top court transferred a Motor Accident Claim Tribunal case related to the incident from Kullu in Himachal Pradesh to a court in Delhi.