A Bench of Justices S B Sinha and Mukundakam Sharma, in what is a setback to the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the Godhra and the subsequent riots cases, dismissed the plea on the ground that neither any sufficient material was produced before the court nor the Code of Criminal Procedure provided for such a method.

“In this case, the SIT has already submitted its report to this court. Nothing has been pointed out before us as to why even the bail granted to the appellants should be cancelled so as to enable us to consider that question independently,” the Bench observed while quashing a Gujarat High Court order in this regard.

The High Court had ordered police custody for Mithabhai Pashabhai Patel and five others allegedly involved in the communal violence that occurred on August 20, 2002 at Vadvasa Patia village. The accused were granted bail a few days after their arrest.

However, the state Government, in keeping with the Supreme Court direction of March 26, 2008, constituted a SIT to conduct further investigations into the riot cases. as the Gujarat Police was alleged to have conducted shoddy investigations.

The SIT thereafter sought police remand of Patel and the five accused but the Sessions Court rejected the plea on the ground that they were already on bail and that they could be taken into custody only when their bail was cancelled.

Aggrieved by this order, the Gujarat Government appealed in the High Court, which directed custodial interrogation of the accused.

The accused then filed a criminal appeal in the apex court questioning the legality of the High Court’s order.

Upholding the appeal, the apex court said that ordinarily once the accused had been released on bail there could be no further remand of the accused as they have already been interrogated.