IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT BOMBAY CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 3652 OF 2008 CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 3652 OF 2008 CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 3652 OF 2008 Manojkumar Santraj Yadav ...Applicant vs. The State of Maharashtra ...Respondent Mr.C.K. Talekar for the Applicant. Mrs.M.H. Mhatre, APP for the State. CORAM : V.M. KANADE, J. CORAM : V.M. KANADE, J. CORAM : V.M. KANADE, J. DATED : JANUARY 14, 2009 DATED : JANUARY 14, 2009 DATED : JANUARY 14, 2009 P.C. :- P.C. :- P.C. :- 1. Heard Counsel for the applicant and APP for the State. 2. This is an application for transfer of the case from the court of Honour Judge Shri Trivedi to the Ad-hoc Additional Sessions Judge K.D. Bhosale. Brief facts are as under:- 3. The sessions trial was initially pending in the court of Ad-hoc Additional Sessions Judge Shri K.D. Bhosale who was sitting in the court of Sewree, Bombay. The learned Judge examined about 34 witnesses and an application was made by the Public Prosecutor that he - 2 - would like to examine one last witness viz. the Investigating Officer. Thereafter, the assignment was changed by the Principal Judge, City Civil Court. All the cases which were pending before the Sessions Judge Shri K.D. Bhosale were transferred to Sessions Judge, Trivedi. Liberty was granted to Shri K.D.Bhosale to retain cases which were already heard by him. Accordingly, a list of cases was given by the learned Sessions Judge, however, this part heard sessions trial was not mentioned in the said list. Therefore, an application was made by the applicant before the Principal Judge, City Civil and Sessions Court under Section 409 to retransfer the case from Shri Trivedi to Shri Bhosale. This application was rejected on the ground that the said case was not substantially part heard since it was not included in the list of such cases given by Sessions Judge Shri Bhosale. 4. In my view, no distinction can be made between the cases given which are part heard and those which are substantially part heard since both the courts are functioning in the same division and only their courts - 3 - are located at different parts of the city. Since the Sessions Judge Shri Bhosale has already recorded the evidence of 34 witnesses, in my view, it would be appropriate if the case is heard finally and disposed of by the same court since he had the benefit of watching demeanour of the witnesses. 5. In the result, the application is allowed. Sessions Case No.311/2007 pending in the court of Ad-hoc Additional Sessions Judge Shri Trivedi is transferred to Ad-hoc Additional Sessions Judge Shri K.D. Bhosale. He shall proceed with the matter further from the stage the evidence is already recorded before Sessions Judge Trivedi. It is clarified that the applicant shall co-operate with the Sessions judge and will not take any further adjournment. The Sessions Judge may decide the case, as expeditiously as possible and in any event, within three months from today. 6. The application is allowed and is disposed of in the aforesaid terms. The papers be sent within a period of four weeks from today. - 4 - (V.M. KANADE, J.) (V.M. KANADE, J.) (V.M. KANADE, J.)