The Supreme Court on Tuesday reserved its judgment on a plea by Ranjan Dwivedi, an accused in the murder case of then Railway Minister L N Mishra 37 years ago, seeking the quashing of the trial charges.
A Bench comprising Justice H L Dattu and Justice C K Prasad heard the arguments at length from July 25. The counsel for the petitioner told the Bench that the case on hand was a unique one as the trial dragged for 37 years.
The extraordinary delay that occurred in conducting the trial was a sufficient ground to bring an end to the case, the counsel argued.
However, Additional Solicitor General Harin Raval, appearing for the CBI did not agree with the views expressed by the counsel for the petitioner and said as the trial was in a concluding stage, it should be allowed to come to its logical end.
The Bench said it would scrutinise the aspect of delay as the trial was the fundamental right of the accused under Article 21 of the Constitution.