A judge who awarded 23 death sentences in six months has been transferred to a family court in Muzaffarnagar following an order issued by the Allahabad High Court, officials said on Sunday.
Additional District and Sessions Judge Ravi Kumar Diwakar, who was presiding over a fast-track court, has been appointed Additional Principal Judge of the family court.
According to the High Court’s order, Shiv Kumari will succeed Diwakar as the Additional District and Sessions Judge of the fast-track court.
Between April and September this year, Diwakar awarded 23 death sentences in 11 cases.
Recently, he questioned the withdrawal of 97 part-heard cases involving murder and other serious offences from his court through administrative orders issued in August by the then District and Sessions Judge, B K Singh.
In a 35-page judgment acquitting an accused in a nearly decade-old case under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, Diwakar questioned whether cases in which hearings had already begun could be withdrawn through administrative orders without following the procedure prescribed by law.
He also raised concerns about judicial independence and the limits of the administrative powers exercised by district judges.
(With inputs from PTI)