CUTTACK: The Orissa High Court on Thursday directed the authorities of Special Jail in Bhubaneswar to produce a death row convict before the court through video conferencing on March 12.
A two-judge bench of the HC comprising Justices Manash Ranjan Pathak and Sashikanta Mishra passed the order while taking up the reference for confirmation of the death sentence awarded to 35-year-old Sanjeet Dash in a 2022 murder case.
In its brief order, the bench directed that the jail authorities must produce the accused-convict through video conferencing at 10.30 a.m. on March 12. The court also asked officials of the Bhubaneswar Special Jail to submit a report on the conduct of the convict in prison.
The authorities have also been instructed to inform the court about the health status of Dash, including his mental health condition after the impugned judgment dated April 13, 2021, by which he was sentenced to death by the trial court.
The high court is currently considering both the reference for confirmation of the death penalty and a jail criminal appeal filed by the convict challenging the verdict.
Dash was convicted for murdering his wife in their residence at Ghatikia under the jurisdiction of Bharatpur police station on June 9, 2022. On August 1, 2024, the court of the 2nd additional sessions judge, Bhubaneswar sentenced him to death after finding him guilty of the crime, categorising the act as “rarest of rare”.
As required under law, the death sentence was forwarded to the high court for confirmation. Simultaneously, the convict filed a jail appeal challenging the conviction and sentence.
Earlier, the HC had dealt with a preliminary objection raised by Dash alleging that he had not received a fair trial. However, on February 19, the bench rejected the plea after examining the issue.
The court held that the trial had been conducted properly and that no prejudice was caused to the accused at any stage. The judges observed that the objection relating to the fairness of the trial went to the root of the matter and was therefore considered as a preliminary point before proceeding further.
With the objection dismissed, the high court is now proceeding with the hearing of the death sentence confirmation case and the connected appeal filed by the convict.