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Giridhar Gopal in Bhubaneswar
The trial in the sensational murder case of Australian missionary Graham Stuart Staines and his two sons Philip and Timothy has been facing several obstacles, the latest being the hunger strike by the accused, stymieing any hopes of a quick finish.
Three years have been passed since the brutal murders, but the case is still dragging on in the court of the district and session judge, Khurda, in the state capital Bhubaneswar.
"Both the Central Bureau of Investigation and the state government are responsible for the delay," one of the defense lawyers Syamananda Mohapatra said.
Speaking to rediff.com he said that four investigating agencies -- the Orissa police, a commission headed by then sitting Supreme Court judge Justice Wadhwa, the Revenue Divisional Commissioner and the Central Bureau of Investigation -- were involved in probing the case.
"The report of Justice Wadhwa and the RDC have not yet been implemented by the government," he said.
The same people who had deposed before Justice Wadhwa and the RDC are being re-produced before the court by the CBI, he added.
The case has become voluminous and the CBI has cited more than a hundred witnesses, he said. "They are deliberately delaying the case though the accused persons want quick justice."
However, the CBI officials have a different story to tell.
"Absence of lawyers, repeated attempts by the accused people to avoid court by citing various illnesses have contributed to the delay," a CBI official told rediff.com on condition of anonymity.
There have been several occasions when the defense counsels remained absent or the witnesses could not be produced on scheduled date, he added.
The CBI has chargesheeted 16 people, including prime accused Dara Singh, for the killings.
According to the charge sheet, Dara Singh allegedly led a group of his associates and torched a station wagon, where Staines and his two minor sons were sleeping, parked in front of a Church at Manoharpur village on January 22, 1999.
The trial was scheduled to start in December 2000, but could not proceed for nearly four months as the defense counsels filed petitions seeking copies of the case records from the CBI.
The trial finally begun in March 2001 but again ground to a halt when one of the accused failed to attend the court due to 'illness'.
The trial restarted in October and proceeded smoothly till December when a hunger strike by Dara Singh protesting 'poor living conditions' in the jail derailed it again. Besides the trial was also affected for several days due to the lawyers' strike.
Now, the case has taken a different turn with the accused demanding either a change of the judge or a change of court for 'justice'. They have also filed a petition in the Orissa high court in this regard.
Thirteen, including Dara Singh, of the 16 accused are again on a hunger strike since July 13, threatening to continue their fast 'till their demands are met'.
Following the hunger strike the district and session judge has disengaged the defence lawyers and appointed a government counsel to defend Singh and the other accused for a 'speedy trial'. Similarly the CBI has announced that they will reduce the number of witnesses and produce only important ones.
However, the disengaged lawyers claim that the accused want an early trial and that is possible 'only when the judge is changed'.
The trial, which was scheduled to restart this month, has been deferred to August 13 with the judge ordering the shifting of the accused from the Jharpada jail to Choudwar jail on a petition filed by the Jharpada prison chief arguing that the 'hunger strike was having an adverse impact on other inmates'.
"The latest move by the officials seeking shifting of the accused is just another deliberate attempt by the administration to dilute the case," defence lawyer Mohanty said.
ALSO SEE: Staines murder accused Dara Singh on hunger strike Staines murder accused on fast unto death Dara Singh's trial deferred in view of his indefinite fast in jail Graham Staines' wife, daughter try to rebuild their lives around his work In Manoharpur, Graham Staines is just a distant memory CBI files charge sheet in Staines case
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