Supreme Court Issues Notice To State To Consider Further Investigation By Independent Agency

Background of the Case

• Sahabuddin, a 38-year-old resident of Alwar, Rajasthan, is currently jailed.
• He is accused of abetting the suicide of his wife after a fight over a minor issue and then filming her death on his mobile.
• The Rajasthan High Court earlier rejected Sahabuddin's plea for bail.
• The bail plea is presently before the Apex Court, with the Bench headed by Hon'ble CJI N.V. Ramana.
• The plea focused on the weak evidence in the charge sheet. Also, the accused's lawyer's repeated persuasion brought the Court's attention towards the charge sheet.

Contentions of the Accused

• The lawyer representing the accused contended that there was no direct link of the accused to the case. Also, the accused is an army personnel, and this case would ruin his life.
• The accused contended that after the fight, when he came out, he saw that his wife had already committed suicide after locking her in her room.
• Also, the accused added that he tried asking her wife to open the locked room.

Observations and Order by the Court

• CJI Ramana instantly caught the weak-links in the charge sheet, stating that "I have not seen such kind of charge-sheet in my entire professional life."
• The Bench further sensed some suspicions over the police probe.
• The Court did not dismiss the bail plea.
• Instead, they issued a notice to the Rajasthan Government, asking them to consider the transfer of the further investigation of the matter to an "independent Investigating Agency", while keeping the present charge sheet in consideration.

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