Chhattisgarh High Court Convicts Amit Jogi in 2003 Ram Avtar Jaggi Murder Case

News Citation : 2026 LN (HC) 233 | 2026:CGHC:15302-DB

April 2, 2026 : The High Court of Chhattisgarh at Bilaspur has delivered a landmark judgment, overturning the long-standing acquittal of Amit Jogi, son of former Chief Minister Ajit Jogi, in the high-profile murder case of NCP leader Ram Avtar Jaggi. In a decisive ruling on April 2, 2026, a division bench led by Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha and Judge Arvind Kumar Verma sentenced the junior Jogi to life imprisonment, identifying him as the “mastermind” behind the 2003 political assassination.

The case dates back to June 4, 2003, when Ram Avtar Jaggi, then the treasurer of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), was shot dead in Raipur while traveling in his car. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which took over the probe in 2004, alleged that the murder was a calculated political hit intended to disrupt an upcoming NCP rally that was perceived as a threat to the then-ruling Jogi administration.

While a lower court in 2007 convicted 28 other individuals for their roles in the conspiracy and execution, it had controversially acquitted Amit Jogi. The High Court’s recent intervention came following an appeal by the CBI and the deceased’s son, Satish Jaggi, which argued that the evidence used to convict the subordinates including meeting records at “Hotel Green Park” and the “CM House” was equally damning for the principal accused.

Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha, writing for the bench, noted that the trial court had erred by drawing an “artificial distinction” between Jogi and the other conspirators. The court observed that the orchestration of such a sophisticated crime, which included the planting of “false accused” by local police to misdirect the initial investigation, could only have been achieved by someone wielding significant authority.

The High Court found that the testimony of Reginald Jeremiah, a former director of Akash Channel, was particularly credible. Jeremiah testified that Amit Jogi had personally chaired meetings to plan the “sabotage” of the NCP rally and had later instructed him to deliver ₹5,00,000 to the hitman, Chiman Singh.

Rejecting Jogi’s repeated requests for further adjournments, the court characterized his legal maneuvers as “dilatory tactics” intended to obstruct justice in a case that has remained unresolved for over two decades. Amit Jogi has been convicted under Section 302 read with Section 120-B of the Indian Penal Code and ordered to surrender to the trial court within three weeks.

Case Reference : ACQA No. 66/2026 (CBI vs Amit Jogi & Ors.), CRR No. 434/2007 (Satish Jaggi vs State of Chhattisgarh & Anr.), and CRR No. 232/2008 (Satish Jaggi vs State of Chhattisgarh & Ors.); counsels appearing for parties as recorded.