Judicial Reassignment in Uttar Pradesh

Additional District and Sessions Judge Ravi Kumar Diwakar, who made headlines by awarding 23 death sentences over a span of six months, has been transferred to a family court in Muzaffarnagar. The reassignment follows an official administrative order issued by the Allahabad High Court.

Judge Diwakar, previously presiding over a fast-track court, will now assume the role of Additional Principal Judge at the Muzaffarnagar family court. According to the high court directive, Shiv Kumari has been appointed to succeed him as the Additional District and Sessions Judge of the fast-track court.

High Volume of Capital Punishment Rulings

Between April and September of this year, Judge Diwakar delivered 23 death sentences across 11 distinct cases, drawing significant attention to his fast-track court's proceedings.

However, the transfer also coincides with recent tensions regarding administrative overreach and judicial autonomy. In a notable 35-page judgment acquitting an accused individual in a decade-old NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) case, Judge Diwakar openly questioned administrative directives issued by the then District and Sessions Judge, B.K. Singh, in August.

Questions Over Administrative Orders

In his judgment, Judge Diwakar challenged the legality of withdrawing 97 part-heard cases involving murder and other serious offenses from his court through administrative orders rather than established legal procedures.

He raised formal concerns regarding the boundaries of judicial independence and the limits of administrative powers exercised by district judges when altering the assignment of active, part-heard trials. The Allahabad High Court's subsequent transfer order brings a new chapter to the fast-track court as administrative oversight and judicial jurisdiction remain under scrutiny.