Supreme Court shifts Shahabuddin from Siwan to Tihar jail

The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed shifting of criminal-turned-politician Mohammad Sahabuddin from Siwan jail in Bihar to Tihar jail to ensure free and fair trial in 45 criminal cases against him.

Holding that it is the “obligation and duty” of the court to ensure free and fair trial, a bench of Justices Dipak Misra and Amitava Roy said that Sahabuddin’s presence in Bihar would discourage the witnesses to depose against him as he was a influential and powerful person and he must be shifted out of the state.

The court directed the state government to hand over his custody to Tihar jail authority within a week and ordered that no special privilege shall be extended to him while bringing him to Delhi. The court said that trial in all 45 pending criminal cases be conducted through video conferencing.