The Chhattisgarh High Court on Thursday convicted Amit Jogi, son of former Chief Minister Ajit Jogi, in the 2003 murder case of NCP leader Ramavatar Jaggi, and directed him to surrender before the court within three weeks, the CBI's counsel said.
The HC reopened proceedings in the case last month following directions from the Supreme Court.
A division bench of Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha and Justice Arvind Kumar Verma on Thursday set aside the acquittal of Amit Jogi, convicted him and issued the surrender directive, CBI counsel Vaibhav A Goverdhan told PTI.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Jaggi was murdered on June 4, 2003, when Ajit Jogi was the chief minister of Chhattisgarh.
The murder occurred just months before the 2003 Assembly elections. Allegations surfaced that the killing was part of a larger conspiracy to disrupt an upcoming NCP rally that was to be attended by senior leaders, including Sharad Pawar.
Initial police investigation faced accusations of bias, prompting the state government to hand over the probe to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which filed a chargesheet against several accused, including Amit Jogi.
Reacting to the HC's order, Amit Jogi said injustice was done to him as he was previously acquitted and now declared guilty without being allowed to be heard. He expressed hope that the truth would prevail and that he would get justice from the Supreme Court.
"Dear friends and well-wishers, today the Hon'ble High Court accepted the CBI's appeal against me in just 40 minutes, without giving me an opportunity to be heard. I regret that a person who had been acquitted by a court has now been declared guilty without even a single chance for a hearing. This has never happened before," he said in a post on X.
"The court has given me three weeks to surrender. I believe a grave injustice has been done to me. I have full faith that I will receive justice from the Supreme Court. I have complete trust in the judicial system and will move forward with peace, faith, and patience. Truth will ultimately prevail," he added.
On the other side, Satish Jaggi, son of the late Ramavatar Jaggi, welcomed the HC verdict, saying, "Truth has won." "Today is Hanuman Jayanti. I bow before Lord Hanuman. I have received his special blessings. My family's 20-year-long penance has borne fruit today. My faith in the judiciary has been vindicated. Truth has prevailed and my father has finally received justice," he told reporters here.
He thanked those who supported him and stood by justice and truth throughout this journey.
"The main accused, Amit Jogi, will now go to jail. While our family cannot truly be happy because we lost our father, justice has been served. I express my gratitude to the judiciary and the CBI. Today, truth has won," he added.
Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader Ramvatar Jaggi was shot dead in Raipur on June 4, 2003, when Ajit Jogi was the chief minister of Chhattisgarh.
The deceased was a close confidant of the then state NCP chief V C Shukla.
On May 31, 2007, a trial court in Raipur held that the prosecution had successfully proved the charges against 28 accused. It, however, acquitted Amit Jogi of the charges levelled against him.
The CBI later challenged the acquittal, but the high court dismissed its petition in 2011 on grounds of delay. Separate appeals by the Chhattisgarh government and Satish Jaggi, son of Ramavtar Jaggi, were also rejected.
In November last year, the SC asked the Chhattisgarh High Court to consider afresh the CBI's plea seeking permission to file an appeal against the acquittal of Amit Jogi.
The CBI arrested Amit in June 2005 in New Delhi for allegedly masterminding the murder. He was in Raipur Central Jail for 10 months. Amit was later granted bail by Bilaspur High Court but the Supreme Court overruled the decision and he was re-arrested on May 2.
The Jaggi murder trial saw many twists and frequent change of judges. The trial began on December 13, 2005, in the special CBI court of Shivmangal Pandey. It was subsequently shifted to the court of district judge R.S. Sharma following a high court directive.
