By IANS
New Delhi : The Supreme Court Friday decided to hear on Dec 10 two pleas, by Rubabuddin Sheikh, brother of Gujarat fake encounter victim Sohrabuddin, and Bollywood lyricist Javed Akhtar, seeking prosecution of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi for plotting the conspiracy to eliminate Sohrabuddin and his wife Kausar Bi.
A bench of Justices Tarun Chatterjee and Dalveer Bhandari decided to hear the pleas on Monday after it was told of the two petitions.
Appearing for Javed Akhtar, advocate Prashant Bhushan, who also heads non-governmental organisation Centre for Public Interest Litigation, sought the apex court’s direction to the Election Commission to cancel Modi’s candidature for inciting and aggravating communal hatred in the state for electoral gains.
Dushyant Dave, counsel for Rubabuddin Sheikh, told the bench that his client had all along feared that Sohrabuddin had been killed in November 2005 in a conspiracy plotted personally by Modi.
In a recent poll campaign speech, the chief minister had clearly owned up to the killings, counsel argued, adding that Modi’s role needed to be investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation.
He also demanded transfer of the trial to courts outside the state.
Dave said Modi’s statement was a blot on the democracy of the country and questioned the authority of the Supreme Court.
Sohrabuddin was killed in a shootout on Nov 26, 2005. Police had then claimed he was a terrorist and was planning to target Modi. However, a CID enquiry showed that Sheikh was merely a petty criminal and the shootout was staged.
His wife, Kauser Bi, was also with him at the time of the encounter and was killed by the policemen. Her body was later burnt and disposed of.