Ahmedabad, October 29: The Gujarat High Court dismissed a petition filed by suspended IPS officer Rajkumar Pandian and some other accused in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case, challenging the constitutional validity of a CrPC section related to giving pardon to an accused.
The petitioners had claimed that granting pardon to co-accused N K Amin, a police officer who wishes to turn approver, would be violation of their fundamental rights.
A Division Bench of justices Jayant Patel and H B Antani rejected the plea with an observation that section 306 of CrPC, read with principles of natural justice and provisions of the Constitution, does not cause prejudice to the fundamental rights of the accused.
The court also referred to its recent judgement wherein constitutional validity of the same section was challenged.
It said co-accused have no role to play before granting of pardon and recording of the statement of an accused, who wants to becomes approver.
In July, Amin had moved the special CBI court seeking pardon and turning an approver in the 2005 episode.
Eight accused in the case, including suspended IPS officers D G Vanzara, Dinesh M N and Pandian, had objected to Amin’s plea to turn approver.
–PTI