Nitin Agey’s father met the chief minister earlier this month. Nitin Agey’s father met the chief minister earlier this month. The Aurangabad bench of the Bombay High Court Wednesday disposed of a criminal writ petition demanding a retrial in the Nitin Agey murder case. An HC bench of justice R M Vorde and Vibha Kankanwadi passed the order saying issues raised in the petition are already included in the appeal being filed in the case by the state government. The 17-year-old Dalit boy was allegedly murdered by upper caste men who suspected his affair with a girl related to them, in Kharda village of Ahmednagar district on April 28, 2014. The accused had, after beating him at a local school run by the Rayat Shikshan Sanstha, allegedly took Nitin to a brick kiln on two-wheelers. There they allegedly assaulted him with a blunt wooden object on the legs, before taking him into some bushes and strangulating him with a rope. Then they allegedly hanged him from a tree to create an impression that he had committed suicide. An offence in the case was lodged at Jamkhed police station. Police had arrested the girl’s brother Sachin Golekar and uncle Sheshrao Yeole, the main accused, and eight others on charges of murder and also under sections of the Scheduled Caste and Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. Three minors were also apprehended for their alleged role in the murder. One of the ten major accused died during trial. On November 23, the Ahmednagar district and sessions court acquitted all nine accused, because of failure of the prosecution to submit sufficient evidence to prove the allegations. The three minors were earlier acquitted by a Juvenile Justice Board. The prosecution examined 26 witnesses, of which 14 including key witnesses, had turned hostile. Social activist Sanjay Bhalerao had filed the petition in Aurangabad HC through lawyer Nitin Satpute demanding fresh recording of statements of witnesses, action against witnesses who turned hostile, retrial in a court in Mumbai, and reinvestigation of the case by the CBI. Public prosecutor Amarjeetsingh Girase told the court that the law and judiciary department of the state had already passed an order on December 6, 2017, to challenge the acquittal order in the case. He said that the appeal is ready and would be submitted before the court in a couple of days. Also, the government has taken a decision to file application requesting de novo trial in the case. A request in this regard will be included in the appeal filed by the government. The prosecutor also told the court that orders for legal action against witnesses who turned hostile were also issued by the law and judiciary department on December 12, and applications have been filed in the Ahmednagar district and sessions court accordingly. Taking note of the steps taken by the government in the case, the court disposed of the criminal writ petition saying its purpose is already served. For all the latest Mumbai News, download Indian Express App

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