Uber cab rape case: Defence counsel accuses judge of being biased

New Delhi: Defence counsel in the Uber rape case has accused the judge conducting the trial of being “biased” towards him. The charge was made by advocate D K Mishra, appearing for Shiv Kumar Yadav, who has been accused of raping a 25-year-old woman in his cab, when the victim’s father had appeared before Additional Sessions Judge Kaveri Baweja to give the order of the Supreme Court staying the proceedings of the case. [caption id=“attachment_2152689” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational image. PTI[/caption] The apex court on March 10 had restrained the media from reporting the statements of witnesses which have been recorded after the Delhi High Court’s March 4 order allowing the accused’s plea to recall and re-examine 13 prosecution witnesses including the victim. “He (Mishra) further adds that this court is biased because even if he ‘breathes’, it is recorded in the order sheet, but the court is not recording the conduct of father of prosecutrix (in taking away the copy of the apex court order from him in the court room)”, the judge noted in her order. The court recorded it in the order sheet after repeated insistence of the counsel to take on record the conduct of the victim’s father. The judge said, “I have tried to pacify defence counsel stating that it is only a small issue. The father of the victim is a layman and moreover, he has again given the order of the Supreme Court to the defence counsel now. But he still insists that the aforesaid be recorded”. PTI