Supreme Court pulls up Nitish Kumar government

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday made a very scathing reference to “witnesses disappearing” in the Shahabuddin case, ticked off the Nitish Kumar government in Bihar for not showing any urgency in challenging his bail, but eventually put off the hearing of a plea for cancelling his bail by a Siwan resident whose three sons have allegedly been killed at his behest.

“Since allegations and counter allegations are being made, we do not intend to adjourn the matter. How many witnesses have been bumped off ? You want to wash away everything?” Justice Pinaki Chandra Ghose, who was sitting alongside Justice Amitava Roy, demanded to know of Shahabuddin’s lawyers when they sought more time to reply to the plea for cancelling his bail.

The observations came during the hearing in court on Monday on a plea to cancel his bail. Shahabuddin was released on bail in early September after years in jail. He’s facing a life term in one case of murder.