New Delhi, Jan 4 (UNI) Supreme Court judge Justice Sandeep Mehta recused from hearing the appeal filed by the State of Rajasthan against the acquittal of accused persons in the 2008 Jaipur bomb blasts case.
Rajasthan High Court is the parent High Court of Justice Mehta, who was elevated to the Supreme Court in November last year.
The case pertains to an incident that occurred on May 13, 2008. Several explosions took place in Jaipur, resulting in the death of 71 persons and leaving 185 injured.
The trial court found four persons guilty of the offense and awarded them the death penalty. However, in March last year, the Rajasthan High Court set aside the convictions, after pointing out glaring lapses in the investigation.
The HC also declared that one of the accused persons was a juvenile at the time of the offense.
Aggrieved by the Rajasthan High Court order, separate appeals were filed by the State and the victims against the acquittal judgment before the Supreme Court.
On May 17, 2023, the Apex Court refused to pass an absolute stay on the High Court’s order while hearing the State’s appeal. The Apex Court ordered their release subject to certain conditions.
Recently, the Top Court (on December 8) dismissed a Special Leave Petition filed by the State of Rajasthan against its High Court order declaring one of the convicts in the case to be a Juvenile on the date of occurrence.
The SLP filed on January 2, 2024 by the state of Rajasthan was listed before a bench of Justice B R Gavai and Justice Sandeep Mehta today.
However, Justice Mehta recused himself from the case saying that the Rajasthan High Court is his parent High Court so he cannot decide this case.
