Key witness in Sanjiv Bhatt case missing

The case against suspended IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt, who has been accused of forcing a constable to sign a false affidavit, has taken a new turn with a key witness going missing.

The case against suspended IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt, who has been accused of forcing a constable to sign a false affidavit, has taken a new turn with a key witness going missing.

Shrenik Shah had reportedly gone to the Mahudi temple near Gandhinagar for Diwali puja on Tuesday, but when he did not return even by Wednesday evening, his family lodged a complaint with the police here.

Shah was allegedly present when Pant signed an affidavit supporting Bhatt's claim that he had attended the meeting called by chief minister Narendra Modi, following the Godhara train carnage in 2002.

Then Pant filed a police complaint alleging that Bhatt had forced and threatened him to file the affidavit. It was on Pant’s complaint that Bhatt was arrested on September 30. He was released on bail on October 17.

The Ahmedabad police, which is investigating the case, has made Shah a witness in the case and has recorded his statement, in which he has said he was present when Bhatt “forced” Pant to file the affidavit at advocate Vijay Kanara's office in June.

In April, Bhatt filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court, contending that in the meeting on February 27, 2002, Modi had asked the police to “let Hindus vent their anger against the minority community”. Bhatt had also mentioned that Pant, who knew about the CM's meeting, had been threatened with dire consequences.