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Court Delivers Verdict in High-Profile Murder Case

In a significant ruling, a CBI court in Siwan, Bihar, sentenced three individuals to life imprisonment on Wednesday for their involvement in the 2016 murder of journalist Rajdev Ranjan. Officials confirmed the sentencing.

Additional District Judge Namita Singh also imposed a fine of ₹1.5 lakh on the convicted individuals: Rohit Kumar Soni, Vijay Kumar Gupta, and Sonu Kumar Gupta. Ranjan, who worked for the Hindi daily Hindustan, was shot dead on May 13, 2016, in a fruit market in Siwan. His wife alleged that Mohammad Shahabuddin, a leader of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), was implicated in the crime.

The Bihar government had assigned the investigation to the CBI. Shahabuddin passed away due to COVID-19 in 2021, leading to the closure of the case against him.

According to a CBI spokesperson, the agency registered the case on September 15, 2016, following a request from the Bihar government and a notification from the central government, taking over the investigation from the Siwan police.

On December 21, 2016, the CBI filed a charge sheet against a minor. The agency charged Shahabuddin, along with his alleged associates Mohammad Azharuddin Beg, also known as Laddan Miyan, Vijay Kumar Gupta, Rohit Soni, Rajesh Kumar, Rishu Jaiswal, Sonu Kumar Gupta, and the minor, under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, including criminal conspiracy and murder.

The spokesperson noted that the trial for the minor, who was an adolescent at the time of the crime, is ongoing in a juvenile court. Defense attorney Sharad Sinha mentioned last week that Laddan Miyan and two other defendants were acquitted due to lack of evidence.

Furthermore, the CBI spokesperson indicated that the court has directed the Muzaffarpur District Legal Services Authority to provide compensation to the victim's family as per the law.