New Delhi: The Supreme Court today said its “real concern” was to see that a fair trial was conducted in the Kathua gangrape and murder case.
A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra assured that if it finds even the slightest possibility of lack of fair trial, it will transfer the case out of Kathua.
The CJI, who is leading a three-judge bench, made the remarks after a Bar Council of India (BCI) committee, led by former High Court Chief Justice Tarun Agarwala, filed a confidential report in the Supreme Court stating that lawyers’ protests demanding a CBI enquiry into the case is “justified.”
The bench, also comprising Justices A. M. Khanwilkar and D. Y. Chandrachud, said that the trial should be fair not only for the accused but also for the victim’s family and that protection must be ensured for both them and their lawyers.
The bench also considered the issue of alleged obstruction by lawyers in administration of justice in the case and said,”If the lawyers are at fault, they would be dealt in accordance with law.”
During the hearing, the Supreme Court said the real issue in the matter was to have a fair trial in the case.
The matter will be next heard on July 30.
The child from a minority nomadic community had disappeared from near her home in a village near Kathua in Jammu region on January 10. Her body was found in the same area a week later.