The Supreme Court on Thursday indicated that the criminal cases against dismissed Gujarat cop Sanjiv Bhatt stood on a different footing than the Gujarat riots cases where the Court had monitored the probe conducted by an independent team of police officers appointed by the Court.
The Bench of Chief Justice Hl Dattu and Justice Arun Mishra found that first complaint against Bhatt was by one police officer alleging he was pressurised by Bhatt.
Bhatt’s lawyer, senior advocate Indira Jaising claimed he was victimised after he spoke out against the role of then Gujarat CM Narendra Modi asking police to go slow in a meeting on February 27, 2002.
The other complaint against Bhatt was filed by his close friend and the then Additional Advocate General of Gujarat Tushar Mehta from whose emails details emerged how AAG drafted affidavits for accused in Gujarat riots and sent it for vetting by third parties and lawyers for the accused.
Bhatt wanted SIT probe into the two FIRs against him had claimed to be a victim and alleged that the cases were an attempt to silence him against exposing the complicity of the State’s political establishment during the riots.