Ahmedabad: The Gujarat High Court today
issued notice to Amit Shah while hearing CBI`s petition
challenging a lower court order rejecting its plea for remand
of the former Gujarat minister arrested in connection with the
Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case.
In the petition, CBI has sought quashing of the order
passed by the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate yesterday
rejecting its plea for Shah`s remand. It has further requested
for 10 days custody of Shah.
Hearing the case, Justice Akil Kureshi issued notice
to Shah, currently lodged in Sabarmati Central Jail here, and
the state government who are respondents in the case. Further
hearing in the case is scheduled for tomorrow.
Appearing for CBI, Senior Supreme Court counsel K T S
Tulsi submitted that the lower court magistrate had committed
an error in holding that merely because cognisance of offence
was taken, power of police custody or remand was exhausted.
CBI`s plea demanding 10-day remand of Shah was
rejected yesterday by the special CBI court saying the probe
agency does not have substantial grounds to seek his remand.
Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate A Y Dave said the
agency was given three days time to question Shah inside jail,
but they quizzed him for only for three hours. Hence, the CBI
demand for Shah`s remand cannot be entertained, the court
said.
Tulsi said the lower court magistrate had seriously
erred by concluding that Shah was interrogated for merely
three hours in jail by CBI.
The jail record in fact shows that the accused (Shah)
was interrogated for around five hours each day between July
20-30, as per court orders, the CBI petition said.
Tulsi further said the magistrate has not gone through
the case diary and the report given in sealed cover to him by
the CBI.
"The magistrate, it seems did not even endeavour to
correlate the points mentioned in sealed cover with the
relevant facts mentioned in the case diary," the CBI petition
said, adding the order by the magistrate was passed without
application of mind.
The petition further said the magistrate had committed
fundamental error in assuming that the remand was being sought
for obtaining confession from Shah.
When Justice Kureshi asked to narrate the factual
aspect on which CBI was seeking remand, Tulsi said it was to
recover certain documents concealed by Shah.
Remand was also required to recover material like
Shah`s personal computer, laptop computer, phones and some
letters which could provide vital evidence in the probe, the
senior counsel added.
Chief investigation officer in the case Amitabh Thakur
has also filed an affidavit in the High Court describing the
need for remand of Shah.
PTI
