The Hindu : Front Page : Manu Sharma urges Bench to recuse itself from case

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Saturday, Nov 04, 2006
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Manu Sharma urges Bench to recuse itself from case

Staff Reporter

NEW DELHI: Siddharth Vashishtha alias Manu Sharma, prime accused in the Jessica Lal murder case, on Friday moved an application in the Delhi High Court urging the Bench hearing the appeal in the case to recuse itself from it and take cognisance of an alleged contempt committed by a national daily for publishing a report in connection with the case.

The daily had carried the report on Thursday under the headline, "Sharmas tried to influence Sodhi'', saying Justice R.S. Sodhi had refused to hear a bail application by Manu Sharma in 2002 on the ground that "he had been approached on behalf of Sharma''.

In the application before the High Court, counsel for Manu Sharma said it was wholly untrue that the Sharmas had tried to influence Mr. Justice Sodhi.

It was also not true that Mr. Justice Sodhi had said anything of the kind. Nor was it factually true that Manu Sharma had done anything of that kind, the application stated.

A Division Bench of the Court comprising Mr. Justice Sodhi and Mr. Justice P.K. Bhasin has been hearing the appeal filed by the Delhi police against the acquittal of all accused in the case, including Manu Sharma, by the trial court in February this year.

"If Mr. Justice Sodhi had suspected that Manu Sharma or someone on his behalf or at his instance had tried to approach him, then the Bench would not have taken up the matter or heard the prosecution on it for such a long time or allowed counsel for the accused to begin his argument on November 1,'' the application said.

Effect of report

The whole purpose and effect of the publication of the report in the daily was to cause further prejudice to Manu Sharma and to bring about a serious miscarriage of justice, and an attempt to intimidate the Bench hearing the appeal, the application charged.

The application alleged that the report was in continuation of a "campaign" mounted by the newspaper as was apparent from another news item which had appeared in it when Manu Sharma was acquitted in the case.

Proper proceedings

The application urged the Court to institute proper proceedings against the Editor of the newspaper and the correspondents under whose names the report had appeared.

The Bench will take up the application for hearing on November 7.

PTI adds: Under fire from certain quarters including his own son for defending Manu Sharma in the Jessica Lall murder case, noted lawyer Ram Jethmalani on Friday said he was not bothered about it and would go ahead with the case as a ``responsible advocate''.

``I am a responsible professional. As a lawyer I know my responsibility under the rules of the Bar Council of India,'' he said when told that even his family members and some close friends had reportedly said that he should have kept himself away from this case.

``My family members (including my son) are scared that their dad will gain unpopularity,'' he said, and added that ``no lawyer will refuse to accept a client's case just for the sake of apprehension of unpopularity''.

The senior advocate said he was not bothered with the reactions appearing in the media. ``I do not care whoever says what. Let it be relative, public or media,'' he added.

He brushed aside talk that money was the factor behind his decision to accept the brief to defend Manu Sharma, adding that he was doing the case free of charge.

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