Rubabbuddin Sheikh, the brother of Gujarat encounter victim Sohrabuddin Sheikh, has requested the Supreme Court to reinstate the state police.
Deputy IGP Rajnish Rai, who was removed from the probe team on May 3, after the court asked him to explain why IGP Geetha Johri was removed from the case.
In an additional affidavit filed in the court ahead of the May 15 hearing, Rubabbuddin alleged that Gujarat DGP P C Pandey removed Rai from the investigation as the former was unhappy with the honest, impartial and proactive investigation of the latter.
Emphasising that he never sought Rai’s ouster from the probe, Rubabbuddin submitted that the investigation could easily have continued with Rai as the investigating Officer and Johri being his supervisory officer.
Pointing out that even before the court sought explanation about Johri’s removal from the probe, Pandey had on April 27 issued a letter virtually stripping Rai of all powers of investigation, he requested the court to direct the state not to change the probe team.
Raising serious questions about Pandey’s alleged partisan role during the post-Godhra riots in Ahmedabad, he urged the court to hand over the probe to the CBI.
The court would consider his plea on May 15 when it takes up Gujarat government’s final status report on the November 2005 fake encounter of Sohrabuddin and the subsequent killing of his wife Kausar Bi.
{{/usCountry}}The court would consider his plea on May 15 when it takes up Gujarat government’s final status report on the November 2005 fake encounter of Sohrabuddin and the subsequent killing of his wife Kausar Bi.
{{/usCountry}}The state government has opposed the demand for CBI probe on the ground that it might be used for political purposes.
E-mail: satya.prakash@hindustantimes.com