Supreme Court dismisses review petition in Judge Loya death case. Here's the order

Update at 9:34 pm: Second review petition filed in the Supreme Court in the Justice Loya Death Case.

Immediately after the dismissal of Bombay Lawyer’s Association plea, the second original petitioner in the case - Bandhuraj Lone - has moved another review petition before the Supreme Court. 

Bandhuraj lone seeks review of the Supreme Court judgment dismissing probe in the Judge Loya death Case.

The Supreme Court on Tuesday dismissed a review petition in the Judge Loya death case.

The petition was filed by the Bombay Lawyers Association challenging the apex court's April 19 unanimous judgment that Judge BH Loya, who was hearing the high-profile Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter case before his death in 2014, had died of natural causes.

In the order copy rejecting the petition, CJI Dipak Misra, Justice AM Khanwilkar and Justice DY Chandrachud wrote:

Delay condoned.

We have carefully gone through the review petition and the connected papers, but we see no reason to interfere with the order impugned. 

The Review petition is, accordingly, dismissed.

In April, while dismissing all the petitions challenging the 'natural death' angle regarding Judge Loya's death for lack of merit and while dismissing the need for an independent probe in the case, Justice DY Chandrachud had said that there was no need to doubt the statements of four judges who were with Justice Loya at the time of his death, omitting the scope of foul play.

The Supreme Court had then also said that there was a need to discourage 'motivated petitions'.

"Frivolous petitions should not be encouraged. Petitioners tried to make it seem like they were for the investigation but are against the judiciary," the apex court had said, calling the petitions a vested interest litigation. 

READ | Here's What The Supreme Court Said About The Dangers Of 'vested Interest Litigations' While Dismissing The Judge Loya Petitions

Reacting to the judgment then, KB Katke, a former judge and Justice Loya's friend, had said:

"There was nothing suspicious in Judge Loya. It was a natural death due to heart attack. There was no merit in the petitions that's why the court has dismissed the petitions."

The issue of Loya's death had come under the spotlight in November 2017 after media reports quoting his sister had fuelled suspicion about the circumstances surrounding it and its link to the Sohrabuddin case in which BJP party president Amit Shah is an accused. However, Judge Loya's son had on January 14 said in Mumbai that his father had died of natural causes, and has since maintained that position.

Additionally, four senior-most apex court judges -- Justices J Chelameswar, Ranjan Gogoi, M B Lokur and Kurian Joseph -- at their January 12 press conference had questioned the manner in which sensitive cases were being allocated and a question posed by a reporter on the scene gave the impression, which was never explicitly confirmed, that Judge Loya's case was one of them.  

Later that day Congress president Rahul Gandhi had issued a news conference where he made a reference to the Loya case in the context of the extraordinary four-judges news briefing. The dismissal of the Judge Loya petitions and others developments relating to the Supreme Court led the Congress to unsuccessfully seek the impeachment of the CJI.