SC appoints Amarendra Sharan as amicus curiae on plea seeking re-probe of Mahatma Gandhi murder

The Supreme court on Friday appointed senior Advocate and former additional solicitor general Amarendra Sharan as amicus curiae to assist the court on a plea seeking reopening of the investigation into the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi.

After a brief hearing that lasted about 15 minutes, a bench comprising Justices S A Bobde and L Nageswara Rao appointed Sharan.

Mumbai-based Dr Pankaj Phadnis, a researcher and a trustee of Abhinav Bharat, has sought to reopen of the probe on several grounds, claiming it was one of the biggest cover-ups in history.

Gandhi was shot dead at point-blank range in New Delhi on January 30, 1948, by Nathuram Vinayak Godse, a right-wing advocate of Hindu nationalism.

In the petition, Phadnis has also questioned the 'three bullet theory' relied upon by various courts of law to hold the conviction of accused -- Nathuram Godse and Narayan Apte, who were hanged to death on November 15, 1949, and Vinayak Damodar Savarkar who was given the benefit of doubt due to lack of evidence.

He has claimed that the Justice J L Kapur Commission of Inquiry set up in 1966 was not able to unearth the entire conspiracy that had led to the killing of Gandhi.

(With PTI inputs)