Lucknow: Aditya Singh’s appointment as the chief judicial magistrate (CJM) in Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal lasted less than 48 hours before he was transferred back as civil judge (senior division) in Sambhal. Singh is the same judge who ordered an advocate commissioner’s survey of Sambhal’s Jama Masjid in 2024, which later led to violence.As per an administrative order from the Allahabad high court on January 20, judge Singh was appointed as the CJM, replacing judge Vibhanshu Sudheer, who was transferred to Sultanpur. However, in another reshuffle on January 22, Singh was reposted as civil judge (senior division) in Sambhal, while judge Deepak Kumar Jaiswal, the CJM in Kaushambi, has now taken over as the new CJM of Sambhal.The latest reshuffle of judges in Sambhal is seen as the Allahabad high court conceding to widespread criticism over the transfer of judge Sudheer, who had ordered the registration of FIRs against policemen on two separate occasions during his short three-month stint as the CJM of Sambhal.Sambhal Police versus CJM Vibhanshu SudheerOne of the two adverse orders against policemen, which garnered the most attention, was the registration of an FIR against additional superintendent of police (ASP) Anuj Chaudhary, the then SHO Anuj Tomar, and 15-20 other policemen. The order was passed on a plea by the father of a victim who was shot during the violence in Sambhal following the advocate commissioner’s survey of the Jama Masjid. Meanwhile, the Sambhal police refused to register the FIR and decided to challenge it in a competent court.In a major twist, judge Sudheer was transferred within a week of the order and sent to Sultanpur in an administrative order from the Allahabad high court on January 20. This was seen as a direct fallout of the ongoing tussle between the Sambhal police administration and CJM Sudheer. The same administrative order had appointed Singh, civil judge (junior division), as the new CJM of Sambhal. This led to massive criticism on social media and triggered protest by lawyers at the Chandausi court in Sambhal, who demanded that the transfer of judge Sudheer be revoked. However, the Chandausi bar association in Sambhal has distanced itself from the controversy claiming the protest by the lawyers was done in individual capacity.