Supreme Court to examine acquittal in Sohrabuddin encounter case

The Supreme Court of India has agreed to examine a plea challenging the acquittal of 22 individuals in the 2005 Sohrabuddin Shaikh fake encounter case. The challenge follows a Bombay High Court decision that upheld the acquittal of the accused, which included 21 police personnel from Gujarat, Rajasthan, and Andhra Pradesh.

A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant issued notices to the acquitted persons. The court indicated it would review selected witness statements to determine if the acquittal was justified, rather than summoning the entire trial record.

During the proceedings, Justice Joymalya Bagchi expressed significant concern regarding the fact that 92 prosecution witnesses had turned hostile during the trial. The court noted that the high number of hostile witnesses necessitates an investigation into whether the original trial was fair and just.