Dhanbad Additional District Judge Uttam Anand died in July after being hit by an autorickshaw (File)
Ranchi, Jharkhand:
The CBI told the state high court on Thursday that the Jharkhand district judge had died in July after being run over by an autorickshaw while on a morning walk intentionally.
The agency said the analysis and reconstruction of the crime scene, examination of CCTV footage and available forensic evidence suggest that Uttam Anand – who was crushed by two men driving a stolen autorickshaw – was deliberately targeted and killed. .
The CBI was providing an update on the inquiry to the Jharkhand High Court.
The agency said the murder investigation was in its final stages; The CBI said that it is now verifying the forensic report with the available physical evidence to complete its case.
Sources told NDTV that the CBI had engaged four different forensic teams from across the country to study the evidence. Sources said the agency is also studying the report of brain mapping and lie detector test of two accused in Gujarat.
The accused – arrested a day after the crime – were identified as driver Lakhan Verma and his assistant Rahul Verma. The three wheeler is registered in the name of a woman.
The CBI’s statement that the investigation is nearing completion comes two weeks after the court expressed displeasure over the slow pace of the probe and ordered the Jharkhand home secretary and the director of the state’s forensic lab to respond.
In August, CBI sources told NDTV that the agency had uncovered several crucial evidences, including the fact that the accused stole two mobile phones from a railway contractor to make multiple calls before committing the crime.
49-year-old Uttam Anand was killed in an autorickshaw collision on July 28.
Seeming as the hit-and-run became a horrific crime, CCTV footage showed the vehicle heading towards the judge as it strolled down a deserted stretch of road.
Some locals found him covered in blood and took him to the hospital, where doctors declared him brought dead.
Judge Anand was dealing with several cases of mafia killings in Dhanbad and had rejected the bail requests of two gangsters.
He was also hearing a murder case involving a close associate of an MLA.
The Supreme Court took up the matter on July 30, saying it had “widespread implications”. The case was then handed over to the CBI, which took charge on August 4.
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