Sadiq Jamal encounter: Trial begins in special CBI court

The Sadiq Jamal Mehtar encounter case trial began Tuesday in the special CBI sessions court in Ahmedabad.

On December 21, 2012, the CBI had filed its chargesheet, almost two-and-a-half-year after the investigation was ordered by the Gujarat High Court. The probe agency have chargesheeted eight accused in the encounter case in 2003.

All the eight accused were produced before Judge K B Gujarathi and he asked them engage lawyers for their defence. However, only suspended deputy superintendent of police Tarun Barot informed the court that his advocate Rohit Verma would be his counsel in the case. The other accused were given time till April 2 to decide on the matter.

On January 13, 2003, Sadiq was killed near Galaxy Cinema in Naroda area by Detection of Crime Branch officials. He was branded as a terrorist belonging to Dawood Ibrahim gang, who was out to kill Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi to avenge 2002 riots.

The CBI has kept the case open for further investigation and more policemen including from Mumbai police are likely to be arrested. Besides, CBI is yet to find the role of Mumbai-based journalist Ketan Tirodkar, who was the first arrest in the case.

Tirodkar, out on bail, also happens to be the first person who spilled the beans while claiming that Sadiq was killed in a fake encounter.

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