“We don’t believe the CBI investigation which says that my brother was killed in a road robbery incident. There was a larger conspiracy behind the murder. I am consulting my lawyers and will soon file a protest petition before the trial court,” he said.

While the trial, being carried out by a district and sessions court in Patna, continues at a tardy pace, the examination of prosecution witnesses is presently underway. Of the 73 witnesses, only 24 have been examined so far. “Our case is already water-tight. We will now analyse the case and reduce the number of witnesses,” said CBI counsel L R Ansari.

Dhananjay today deposed before the court as the 24th witness of the CBI. He was summoned to testify the FIR he had lodged with the police.

He was examined by the defence lawyer, who stressed that Satyendra’s murder was not a simple incident but a larger conspiracy hatched by officers and contractors associated with the Golden Quadrilateral Project, a project he was working on. To this Dhananjay told the court that his brother’s posting as Deputy General Manager had annoyed NHAI officers and contractors, since he was cracking down on their corrupt practices. “My brother had told me he was taking on the corruption in the GQ Project due to which many officers and contractors were after him,” Dhananjay told the court.

However, his statement that Satyendra did not have any kind of personal enmity with anyone was picked by the CBI counsel, who urged the court to note it. “He clearly said that there was no personal enmity. So far as allegation about conspiracy is concerned, it is all based on hearsay and inferences drawn by him. He does not have anything concrete to prove it,” the CBI counsel told The Indian Express outside the court.