I am too small man to comment: Shrinivas Loya

Eighty-one-year-old Shrinivas Loya, paternal uncle of Special CBI Judge BH Loya, on Thursday chose not to comment on the Supreme Court judgement dismissing petitions seeking an independent probe into Judge Loya’s “mysterious” death, maintaining that he was a “too small a man” to comment on the issue. 

On a day when a three-member bench of the apex court, headed by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra, ruled that Judge Loya had died due “natural causes”, a resigned Shrinivas said that the matter was “as good as over” for his family.

Talking to “The Pioneer” over telephone from Latur where he lives, Shrinivas said: “I am too small a man to comment on the Supreme Court’s judgement. The Supreme Court has not only dismissed the case but it has also said that Prashant Bhushan and other senior lawyers have committed criminal contempt of court. What can we do under these circumstances?”

When this correspondent persisted the matter, Shrinivas said: “The matter (Judge Loya’s death) is as good as over for us”.

When his attention was drawn to the fact that he himself had rooted for an independent inquiry into Judge Loya’s death, Shrinivas said: “That was long ago”.

Justice Loya (48) had died of a “heart attack” during a private trip to Nagpur on December 1, 2014. At that time, Justice Loya was hearing the alleged Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter case – in which BJP’s current national president Amit Shah was one of the accused.  Justice Loya’s family had earlier raised several questions about the circumstances leading to Loya’s sudden death.

It may be recalled that The Caravan magazine had come out with a series of stories on the “suspicious” circumstances in which Judge had died in Nagpur on December 1, 2014   

After  late Judge Loya’s son Anuj went to town in January this year saying that he had “no suspici on” over the death of his father and that his family no allegations to make against any one, ,  Shrinivas Loya was quoted by  The Caravan magazine as saying: “He ( Anuj) has just crossed 18. There might be pressure [on him.]”

“Now what should I say. Is he adult enough? He’s just crossed 18. There might be pressure [on him.]...... If his [Anuj’s earlier] view is to be considered, it was to have an inquiry,” Shrinivas had said, while rooting for an inquiry into the “mysterious” death of Judge Loya.

Addressing a news conference here along with his family lawyer Ameet Naik, Anuj had said: “I don’t have any suspicion... There was some suspicion before due to emotional turmoil, but now it is clear. I was 17 at that time and I was in emotional turmoil. I didn’t understand anything at that time”.

“I would like to make it clear that my family is undergoing a lot of difficulty (over the reports published in media on my father’s death). I have no allegations to make against any one. We are pained and are trying to get out of whole thing. (With folded hands) I request you not to harass us or trouble us,” Anuj had said.

“We faced some pressure from politicians and NGOs. We don’t want to name anyone, but please excuse my family from continuously asking about my father’s death,” an emotional Anuj had said.