Thread by @LawBeatInd

[Mahant Narendra Giri Death Case] #AllahabadHighCourt to hear Anand Giri's bail plea in the matter.

It is alleged that Anand Giri had instigated the Mahant, head of Baghambari Gaddi and former National President of Akhil Bharatiya Akhara Parishad (ABAP) to commit suicide.

To read earlier updates: 👇
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The case will be heard before the bench of Justice Rajiv Gupta. Sr. Advocate Gopal Das Chaturvedi to appear for Anand Giri. Adv. Gyan Prakash to appear on behalf of CBI.

Hearing snippets:

Chaturvedi for Anand Giri: In the FIR, only charge of abetment to suicide has been imposed. However, it has come on record that on the day when Mahant committed suicide, I was not even in Allahabad. I was away in Haridwar.

Court: Please confirm, are you the adopted son of the deceased?
Chaturvedi: No My Lord, I was to succeed him only as the Temple Head.
#Prayagraj

Court: Please, confirm your relationship with Mahant. It’s your petition before the court. See the nomenclature of the petition.
Chaturvedi: Yes My Lord, in Mahant Pratha, it is a nomenclature that disciples are considered as sons.
Court: Ok, then please proceed further.

Chaturvedi reads Mahant’s suicide note in which he had stated that the relationship between him and Anand was not cordial at the time of his death. And he had heard that Anand had caused him mental trauma due to which he had outcasted him.

Chaturvedi: My Lord, this letter only shows that relations between the deceased and my client were not good.

Chaturvedi continues: This letter also shows that Mahant was very much determined to commit suicide. Anand had left the math way before with the intention to not return.
#allahabadhighcourt

Note: In the letter, Mahant had stated earlier he was to commit suicide on September 13. Though he could not dare so. The Mahant was later found hanging from a ceiling fan on September 20.
#allahabadhighcourt

Chaturvedi continues: He (Mahant) clearly writes the reason for his suicide that on the date of his death he was saddened after receiving news that Anand could publish his fake photograph with a woman.

Chaturvedi: My submission is that there was just a rumor that one image could be published and he committed suicide. Now, who gave that information to the Mahant? Not known. Whether as alleged, Anand will publish that image or not. Not known.
#allahabadhighcourt

Court: How have you inferred that it was a rumor? Where is it written in his suicide note? Also, the note states that it was Anand Giri’s continuous conduct that instigated Mahant.
#allahabadhighcourt

Chaturvedi: Sir, Mahant had only received that information and basis that he committed suicide. My client cannot be said to abet him to do so.
#allahabadhighcourt #Prayagraj #CBI

Chaturvedi: My Lord, if a woman is falsely told that her son has died, and she commits suicide, all that can be said in such a case is that it was the mischief of the person who had forwarded the rumor to her.
#allahabadhighcourt #Prayagraj #CBI

Court: But Mr. Counsel, these are the last words of a person who was about to die. Anyways, we are only concerned with the prima facie case.
#allahabadhighcourt #Prayagraj #CBI #anandgiri #mahantnarendragirideathcase

Chaturvedi: But my lord, prima facie case means, at least there be abetment. My submission is that the Mahant committed suicide just because of a rumor.

Court: This was not a rumor Mr. Counsel. This was Mahant’s last statement.
#allahabadhighcourt #Prayagraj #CBI

Chaturvedi: Yes my Lord, this is the last statement but what is he stating in there? He is saying that otherwise, he was to commit suicide on September 13, but didn't and on 20th he received this information and committed suicide.
#allahabadhighcourt #Prayagraj #CBI

Court: Mr. Counsel, please refer to Uday Singh v. State of Haryana first.
Chaturvedi: My Lord, any judgment can be read but the latest one on suicide is Justice Chandrachud’s judgment in the Arnab Goswami case.

Court: But it is a case of commercial dispute. How is that relevant here?
Chaturvedi: I am not on that point my Lord. I'm just submitting that there is not even one witness who had named my client. There is no evidence against him as well. The Mahant had died because of a rumor.

Court: Come back to the Arnab Goswami case. What was the background?

Chaturvedi: My Lord, whatever the background in that may be, whatever was summed up of the entire case laws by lordship is the important part of the judgment.
#allahabadhighcourt #prayagraj

Court: It was a matter of commercial dispute between two parties, which is not the case here. Here you are maligning a person, who is your father.
#allahabadhighcourt #prayagraj #CBI

Court: What is your criminal history? Is there a case registered in #Australia for molestation against Anand Giri?
Chaturvedi: No, my Lord. There is nothing as such. Also, my client has never been arrested earlier.

#allahabadhighcourt #prayagraj #CBI

Court: But in the counter by the CBI, at para 16.4 it states so. #CBI, please clarify.
#allahabadhighcourt #prayagraj

Sr. Adv. Gyan Prakash for CBI: Yes, my Lord. We had received such information. We had recorded statement one withness that when Anand Giri was in #Australia, one woman had filed a case against him for molestation.
#allahabadhighcourt #prayagraj #CBI

Court: Mr. Chaturvedi, please file an affidavit clarifying your clients’ criminal history.

Chaturvedi: My Lord, we have already stated so. It’s now for the prosecution to prove our statements false if they find it so. There is no evidence against my client for such a case.

Chaturvedi: Also, it is CBI, why haven't they called records from #Australia if there is a case against my client?
CBI: We have recorded statements of witnesses.
Chaturvedi: These are only hearsay statements, which are not admissible.

Court: But we need to know the criminal history of the accused. It has been stated as a fact that there is a case against you in Australia.
#allahabadhighcourt #CBI #Prayagraj

Chaturvedi: My Lord may kindly have the deponent of this counter-affidavit. We have specifically stated that averments made in para 36 to 111 are a matter of record.
#allahabadhighcourt #CBI #Prayagraj

Chaturvedi: My Lord, their counter just says that 'as per their information'. This is not evidence. If I say that as per my information, #MukhtarAnsari is a nice man, he has been falsely made accused in multiple cases, will that be evidence?
#allahabadhighcourt #CBI #Prayagraj

Chaturvedi: Here, witnesses are stating only hearsay things regarding my client's case in Australia. If they were to prove anything, why haven't they called records of the case?
#allahabadhighcourt #CBI #Prayagraj

Prakash CBI: We are to investigate only this case of suicide. So we have done only that.
#allahabadhighcourt #CBI #Prayagraj

[Order] Court has sought affidavits regarding Anand Giri's criminal history from both parties.
Case will be next heard on February 14.

#allahabadhighcourt #CBI #Prayagraj

The Allahabad High Court today directed the CBI to file an affidavit to the fact that a case of molestation had been registered against Anand Giri in Australia in 2019 and that he had been arrested for the same.
@ISalilTiwari reports
lawbeat.in/news-updates/m…