New Delhi:The Lucknow Bench of Allahabad High Court has upheld the life sentence awarded by a trial court to former Samajwadi Party MLA Vijay Singh and his accomplice SanjeevMaheshwari alias Jeeva in connection with 20 years old murder of senior BJP leader and former Uttar Pradesh Minister BrahmaduttDwivedi and his gunner. The CBI had conducted the probe into the case.
A division bench of the court comprising Justice AjaiLamba and Justice Vijay Laxmi has dismissed the appeals by the two convicts. In its order the court said that it has no hesitation to affirm the well merited findings recorded by the trial court. 

The court has directed SP leader Singh to surrender before the court of Additional Sessions judge on June 5 whereas Jeeva is already in jail in another case.
Former UP minister Dwivedi along with his gunner was murdered on February 10, 1997 in Farrukhabad district. His driver had also received serious injuries in the incident. Later, the probe was transferred to CBI. The role of another BJP leader SakshiMaharaj, currently a LokSabha member, was also probed in the case.
The CBI had submitted charge sheet against as many as eight accused. The trail court on July 17, 2003 convicted Singh and Jeeva for commission of murder of Dwivedi and his gunner and also committing murderous assault on his driver, while acquitting other accused persons. 
Singh and Jeeva had appealed to the HC against the trial court verdict in 2003. Vijay Singh had also contested this year's assembly polls as Samajwadi Party candidate but lost to BJP's Major Sunil DuttDwivedi, who is son of slain BJP leader.