Shahabuddin charge-sheeted in journalist murder case

Rajdeo Ranjan was gunned down on May 13 last year and his wife had accused the former RJD MP of having a role in the killing.

RJD leader and former MP Shahabuddin being shifted to Tihar Central Jail from Patna in New Delhi. File photo

Former Rashtriya Janata Dal MP Mohammad Shahabuddin was on Tuesday charge-sheeted by the CBI in a special court in New Delhi for the offences of murder and criminal conspiracy in the killing of journalist Rajdeo Ranjan in May last year.

Sunil Singh Rawat, investigating officer of the case, and public prosecutor Deep Narayan submitted the charge sheet against Shahabuddin, a four-time MP from Siwan, and six others before CBI judge Anupam Kumari.

Defence lawyer Sharad Sinha said the other accused against whom the agency has filed the charge sheet are Azahruddin Beig alias Laddan Mian, Rishi Kumar Jaiswal, Rohit Kumar Soni, Vijay Kumar Gupta, Ranjeet Kumar and Sonu Kumar Gupta.

This is a supplementary charge sheet by the CBI as it had filed a charge sheet against one accused in December, 2016.

Bihar Police had charge sheeted six persons in the case before the probe was taken over by the CBI. A total of eight persons have so far been charge-sheeted in the case.

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The CBI has charged Shahabuddin, currently lodged in the Tihar Jail in Delhi, under IPC sections related to criminal conspiracy and murder and provisions of Arms Act, a statement from the premier investigating agency said.

“The charge sheet has been filed under section 120B [criminal conspiracy] read with 302 [murder] of the IPC as well as section 27 of the Arms Act,” Mr. Sinha told PTI over phone.

Charge sheet has not been submitted against two oher accused - Mohammad Javed and Mohammad Kaif, who are out on bail in the case as the investigation is on, Mr. Sinha said.

It may be noted that the special CBI court, on May 26, made Shahabuddin an accused in the murder case.

Shahabuddin is facing trial in more than 45 criminal cases. He was moved to the Tihar Jail in February this year on a Supreme Court order on a plea by Siwan native Chandrakeshwar Prasad, whose three sons were killed in two separate incidents.

Rajdeo Ranjan, district bureau chief of a Hindi daily, was gunned down on May 13 last year and his wife had accused Shahabuddin of having a role in the killing .