By IANS
New Delhi : A city court Wednesday released Chandrakant Jha, accused of killing several people and dumping their bodies in front of Tihar Jail, after police found no evidence against him.
Metropolitan Magistrate Manish Gupta ordered the release of Jha in the case relating to the murder of one Umesh four years ago after the investigating officer (IO) submitted that there was no evidence against him.
A first information report (FIR) was registered with the Hari Nagar police station on Nov 20, 2003 following the recovery of Umesh’s body in a bag outside Gate No 1 of Tihar Jail.
Jha, arrested on May 20, was accused of several killings including the murder of Umesh, 26, by the police following his disclosure statement.
“In view of the circumstances and material on record and submissions of the prosecution and the investigating officer, I am of the considered opinion that there is no sufficient evidence against the accused. He may be released in the present case,” the judge said.
In the application seeking release of Jha, investigating officer Ombir Singh said that there was no cogent evidence against him except his alleged disclosure statement.
“The accused was taken on two days’ police remand but no recovery could be effected from him,” Singh said.
Police have so far filed three charge sheets against Jha, who hails from Madhepura in Bihar, in as many murder cases invoking Sections 302 (murder) and 201 (destruction of evidence) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
Police had alleged that Jha, 40, now in judicial custody for the other murder cases, killed his three associates Amit, Dilip and Upendra after taking offence to their “drinking, eating meat and womanising”.
At the time of Jha’s arrest, police had claimed that Jha is a psychopath as he “enjoyed” his every single killing. “He used to kill people after he got annoyed with the victims, who had worked with him, over trifling issues,” said Joint Commissioner of Police Rajesh Kumar.