CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court Friday rejected the plea of the nun from Kandhamal who had sought the intervention of the HC to examine the magistrate who had conducted the test identification (TI) parade in Choudwar jail to identify the accused in the sensation rape case of 2008.
The nun had raised objections to the report of the magistrate who conducted the TI parade of the nun at Choudwar jail in 2009. While the nun claimed that she had identified five of the accused in the TI parade, the magistrate had reported that the victim was able to identify only two accused persons.
A single-judge bench of Justice C R Dash on the day rejected the plea of the nun and dismissed her petition. With this order of the HC, the stay on the trial court proceedings which was imposed in June last year is now vacated.
Sources said Cuttack district sessions court which was holding trial in the sensational rape case that allegedly took place during the communal riot in Kandhamal, would now go ahead with the proceedings.
The HC, however, gave a liberty to the nun allowing her to raise the issue of the magistrate during the trial again. It may be noted here that the trial court had earlier refused to interfere in the TI parade magistrate issue following which the nun had approached the HC.
The Catholic Church nun rape case trial was taken up in Cuttack court since August 2010 after it was transferred here from Phulbani district court following the orders of Orissa High Court.
Ever since Cuttack court began trial, cross examination and deposition of as many as 28 prosecution witnesses were over. However, the cross examination of defence witnesses had not began yet.