Charges framed against Maderna

JAIPUR: A local court in Jodhpur on Monday framed charges against former minister Mahipal Maderna in the Bhanwari Devi murder case, paving the way for trial. However, the court could not read out charges against another prime accused and legislator Malkhan Singh Bishnoi as he was not present in the court and was admitted to a hospital.
Maderna has been charged under sections 120 B (criminal conspiracy), 201 (cause the evidences to disappear), 302 (murder), 364 (abduction with intention of murder) of IPC and also SC/ST Act.The charges have been framed nearly a year after Bhanwari Devi, a government nurse, was abducted and kidnapped from Bilara and then murdered. She was allegedly blackmailing Maderna and MLA Malkhan Singh Bishnoi on the basis of CDs showing them in a compromising position with her.
According to senior special counsel Ashok Joshi, the charges were framed by ACJM (SC/ST Cases) Girish Kumar Sharma. Maderna did not appear in the court on October 4 when it had framed charges against 16 accused and had adjourned the matter till October 15 to read out the charges against Maderna and Malkhan Singh Bishnoi, who also did not appear in the court citing health problems.
"Maderna was out of jail following the death of his mother and Bishnoi was admitted to hospital in Jaipur for a surgery on October 4. So both of them could not appear in the court during framing of charges, as presence of the accused is mandatory in the court during framing of the charges," Joshi said.
"Since Maderna appeared on Monday, the court read out the charges against him and adjourned till October 30 to read out the charges against Bishnoi, who is still admitted in the hospital," he said .
There are 17 accused in total, of which Paras Ram Bishnoi and Om Prakash Bishnoi have been given bail on account of revised charges by the court. The 17th accused, Indra Bishnoi, is still absconding and the CBI has already initiated action for auctioning her property.
Bhanwari Devi was allegedly blackmailing both of them on the basis of the CD following which the two politicians allegedly hired professional gangs of criminals to first abduct and then murder her.