A sessions court in Khambhaliya taluka here Friday paved way for forming of charges against IPS officer Sanjeev Bhatt and six others, accused in a police atrocity case of 1990, where one person had died and several others were injured.
A sessions court in Khambhaliya taluka here Friday paved way for forming of charges against IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt and six others, accused in a police atrocity case of 1990, where one person had died and several others were injured.
Additional Sessions Judge NT Solanki today accepted the state government plea for the withdrawal of petition, seeking revision of court's earlier order, initiating criminal proceedings against Bhatt and six others for brutally beating up people in Jamkhambhalia taluka in the year 1990, after communal clashes broke out in the area.
Public prosecutor Vimal Chotia had moved application for the withdrawal of revision petition last week after he found that government's application for revision of order initiating criminal proceedings against Bhatt and six others had become infructuous. The application by the state government was filed in 1996.
"The court accepting our offer for withdrawal of revision petition, has paved way for framing of charges against the accused in the case," Chotia said.
He said that Gujarat high court, in 1996, had dismissed the petition of those accused in the case, who had challenged the criminal proceeding initiated against them.
"In 1996, the government had filed a revision petition in the court. The proceeding in the matter was postponed, as the accused sought time and disposal of the revision petition by the lower court first," Chotia said.
"After I got the case some three months back, after studying it, I suggested that the revision petition should be withdrawn as the state cannot be a complainant on the one hand and defend the accused on the other," he said, adding that in any criminal case, state becomes a complainant.
Chotia said that now the court will proceed further with framing of charges against the accused and conducting trial in case.
In 1990, when Bhatt was posted as DySP in Jamnagar in 1990, where he was in-charge of police bandobast in Jamkhambhliya area, where communal clashes had broke out.
It was under his command that police officer had beaten up people, causing death of one man and injuring many others.
Following this incident, a police complaint was filed against Bhatt and six others.
Bhatt, in an affidavit filed in the SC, had claimed that he was present in the meeting called by Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on night of February 27, 2002, where Modi had instructed his officers to allow Hindus "to vent out their anger" during the clashes and he wanted Muslims to be "taught a lesson".
After his affidavit, Bhatt has been questioned by the Nanavati Commission probing the 2002 riots.
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