The hearing on various issues related to the fake encounter killing of Syed Sohrabuddin, an alleged gangster by the Gujarat police, was on Tuesday adjourned by the Supreme Court till the first week of September.
A bench of Justices Tarun Chatterjee and Aftab Alam directed the Gujarat Government, the petitioner and other interventionists to file their respective submission on the issue before the next date of hearing.
Sohrabuddin was shot dead by the Gujarat police on the outskirts of Ahmedabad in November 2005. It was alleged that his wife and another witnesses Tulsiram Prajapati were also bumped off by the police to destroy evidence in the case.
On the intervention of the Supreme Court, the Gujarat conducted a probe by the Crime Investigation Department (CID) into the killings culminating in the arrests of a dozen officers including three top cops D G Vanzara, Rajkumar Pandian and a Rajasthan cadre officer M N Dinesh.
The Gujarat Government has also filed a special leave petition in the apex court challenging a direction of the High Court to rope in V A Rathod, an Inspector and key prosecution witness, as an accused in the fake encounter case.
In its SLP, the Gujarat Government has argued that it was the prerogative of the State to decide the persons to be arrayed as accused and witnesses.
{{/usCountry}}In its SLP, the Gujarat Government has argued that it was the prerogative of the State to decide the persons to be arrayed as accused and witnesses.
{{/usCountry}}In other words, it argued that courts cannot direct the Government to include the name of an accused.