Dhanbad court acquits all accused in Neeraj Singh murder; family to appeal

A special court in Dhanbad on Wednesday acquitted all the accused in the high-profile Neeraj Singh murder case, citing a lack of evidence. The verdict came after more than eight years of trial.

The order was delivered by Special Judge Durdash Chandra Awasthi of the MP-MLA court. Defence counsel Mohammad Javed said the court freed all the accused after finding the evidence insufficient. Neeraj Singh’s brother, Abhishek Singh, announced that he would challenge the decision in the High Court.

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Former deputy mayor Neeraj Singh, his driver Ghaltoo Mahato, personal assistant Ashok Yadav, and bodyguard Munna Tiwari were killed in a hail of bullets on 21 March 2017 near Steel Gate under Saraidhela police station. Two motorcycles carrying four assailants intercepted Singh’s vehicle and opened fire. An FIR was lodged by Abhishek Singh two days later, naming Singh’s cousin and former MLA Sanjiv Singh, along with others.

Over the years, the case expanded to include 12 accused. The police chargesheet named shooters and associates from Jharkhand, Uttar Pradesh, and Bihar, including Aman Singh, Kurbaan Ali, Chandan Singh, Shibu alias Sagar Singh, Pankaj Singh, Dablu Mishra, Vinod Singh, Dhanji Singh, Jainendra alias Pintu Singh, and Sanjay Singh. Ten of them stood trial.

The trial spanned 408 hearings across six different courts. The prosecution examined 37 witnesses out of 74, while the defence produced five. Both sides presented arguments over 49 sittings.

One of the prime accused, Aman Singh, was killed inside jail in December 2023. At the time of the verdict, seven of the accused were on bail while three appeared via video conference from Dhanbad, Koderma, and Palamu jails.

The case has also been marked by its political overtones. Neeraj Singh’s widow, Purnima Singh, is a former Congress MLA from Jharia, while Sanjiv Singh’s wife is the present BJP MLA from the same constituency.

Security was tightened in and around the court premises ahead of the verdict, with police converting the area into a virtual garrison. Access to the court complex was restricted, and frisking was conducted at all entry points. SSP Prabhat Kumar personally supervised the arrangements.

The acquittal of all accused brings a dramatic twist to one of Dhanbad’s most sensational murder trials, but with the victim’s family vowing to appeal, the case appears far from over.