Ex-Chhattisgarh CM's son sentenced to life in 2003 NCP leader murder case

The Chhattisgarh High Court has sentenced former Chief Minister Ajit Jogi's son Amit Jogi to life imprisonment in the high-profile Jaggi murder case, overturning his earlier acquittal and sending shockwaves through the state's political landscape.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha and Justice Arvind Kumar Verma ruled that the trial court's 2007 clean chit to Jogi, president of Janata Congress Chhattisgarh (J), was legally unsound. The court noted that when 28 other accused had already been convicted on the same evidence, acquitting the alleged main conspirator was unjustified.

Amit Jogi was convicted on charges of murder and criminal conspiracy and fined Rs 1,000.

The case dated back to June 4, 2003, when Ramavatar Jaggi, a senior Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader and close aide of Vidyacharan Shukla, was shot dead in broad daylight, triggering a major political uproar. The police named 31 individuals, and in 2007, a Raipur court convicted 28 of them while acquitting Amit Jogi for lack of evidence. Jaggi's son, Satish Jaggi, continued the legal battle, ultimately pushing the matter to the Supreme Court, which led to the High Court reopening the case.

Alongside Amit Jogi, the court reaffirmed convictions for accused including Yahya Dhebar, Abhay Goyal, Firoz Siddiqui, VK Pandey, and Chiman Singh.

Amit Jogi's legal team has already filed a Special Leave Petition (SLP) in the Supreme Court, signalling potential further developments.

The accused were convicted last week and a division bench of Chhattisgarh High Court's Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha and Justice Arvind Kumar Verma issued the surrender directive.

Amit Jogi responded to the High Court verdict, claiming he faced injustice, having been acquitted earlier and now convicted without a chance to present his side. He expressed hope that the Supreme Court would set things right.

"Dear friends and well-wishers, today the Hon'ble High Court accepted the CBI's appeal against me in just 40 minutes, without giving me an opportunity to be heard. I regret that a person who had been acquitted by a court has now been declared guilty without even a single chance for a hearing. This has never happened before," he said in a post on X.

"The court has given me three weeks to surrender. I believe a grave injustice has been done to me. I have full faith that I will receive justice from the Supreme Court. I have complete trust in the judicial system and will move forward with peace, faith, and patience. Truth will ultimately prevail," he added.

Meanwhile, Satish Maggi welcomed the High Court verdict, saying "Truth has won".

"Today is Hanuman Jayanti. I bow before Lord Hanuman. I have received his special blessings. My family's 20-year-long penance has borne fruit today. My faith in the judiciary has been vindicated. Truth has prevailed and my father has finally received justice," news agency PTI quoted him as saying.

"The main accused, Amit Jogi, will now go to jail. While our family cannot truly be happy because we lost our father, justice has been served. I express my gratitude to the judiciary and the CBI. Today, truth has won," he added.

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