By IANS,
New Delhi : The Delhi High Court has asked the city police to get the Supreme Court to clear the confusion over who should be the prosecuting agency to oppose the bail plea of Vikas Yadav, convicted in the murder of Nitish Katara in 2002. A division bench comprising Justice B.D. Ahmed and Justice V.B. Gupta had earlier this week asked Delhi Police to get within four weeks the necessary directions from the apex court as to who will oppose the bail plea in the court. It slated the matter for hearing March 3 when the court will start hearing arguments over Vikas Yadav’s bail plea.
Vikas had last year moved the High Court challenging his conviction by a Delhi trial court after the Supreme Court rejected his petition seeking permission to file an appeal in any high court barring the Delhi High Court.
Vikas’s appeal in the trial court was opposed by Delhi Police as well as Uttar Pradesh police so the Delhi High Court this time wanted it to clear the confusion over jurisdiction.
Vikas Yadav, son of former lawmaker D.P. Yadav, and his cousin Vishal Yadav were convicted by the Patiala House court for Nitish Katara’s murder and were sentenced to life imprisonment. Vikas and Vishal resented Nitish’s relationship with their sister Bharti.
Katara was kidnapped and murdered after he attended a wedding in Ghaziabad Feb 16, 2002. His half burnt body was found in a village in Bulandshahr in Uttar Pradesh.
On a plea by Katara’s mother Neelam Katara, who apprehended that Vikas’ father was interfering with the probe and trial in Ghaziabad, the Supreme Court had shifted the trial to the Patiala House court.
Vikas had moved the Allahabad High Court challenging his conviction and sentence. But the court had refused to hear it, saying it was not entitled to hear the appeal against a judgement delivered by a trial court in Delhi.
The Allahabad High Court said the right forum to challenge a Delhi trial court’s ruling is the Delhi High Court itself.