Will Amit Shah’s return impact case witnesses?

How will the return of former minister Amit Shah to Gujarat impact the morale of witnesses in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case? At a time when trial in the case is about to start, former director general of police RB Sreekumar says that the morale of witnesses could be adversely affected by Shah’s return.

On the other hand, Mukul Sinha, advocate for the complainant in the case, believes that the Rajasthan angle of the encounter has not yet been explored by the investigators and it may take the CBI more time to complete the probe.

Talking to DNA, Sreekumar said that many witnesses in the case are from the police department and Shah’s return might intimidate them.

“They need to be protected till the trial is over,” he said. Sreekumar also said that the case is in a crucial stage and it is important to protect witnesses.

Sinha, advocate of the complainant Rubabuddin Sheikh (brother of Sohrab) said that the investigation of the case is still not over. The CBI is yet to fully investigate the Rajasthan connection of the encounter case, he said.

“Rajasthan is the place where the conspiracy to kill Sohrabuddin was hatched,” he said. Moreover, the distance between Rajasthan and Mumbai means it will take the CBI longer to finish the investigation and begin the trial of the case.

He also said that witnesses, evidences and all other materials connected to the case are in Gujarat and the shifting of the case from here to Maharashtra will take long. Sinha further said that it was the CBI, and not the victims, who had sought transfer of the trial of the Sohrab case.

However, Sinha is all set to oppose the CBI if the investigating agency decides to transfer the trial of the Tulsi Prajapati fake encounter case to Maharashtra.