SC to hear CBI plea for transfer of Sohrabuddin case today

A Bench of Justices Aftab Alam and Ranjana Prakash Desai yesterday said it would hear on Thursday CBI’s plea after conclusion of arguments on the investigating agency’s appeal seeking quashing of the bail granted to Shah by the Gujarat High court.

In its transfer petition,CBI alleged “there was open servility and excessive demonstration of favourable and partisan attitude to Shri Amit Shah by the learned Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate.

“He was granted exemption from appearance even without giving a hearing to CBI,” the agency claimed.

Sohrabuddin and his wife Kausar Bi were allegedly abducted by cops of the Gujarat’s Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) from Hyderabad and killed in a fake encounter near Gandhinagar in November 2005.

Tulsiram Prajapati,said to be an accomplice of Sohrabuddin,was subsequently eliminated by the ATS to destroy evidence as he was an eye witness,CBI alleged.

In yesterday’s arguments on quashing of Shah’s bail,counsel Huzefi Ahmadi,appearing for Rubabuddin Sheikh,brother of Sohrabuddin,claimed documentary evidence to prove Shah’s involvement in the killing of Tulsiram Prajapati,an eye witness in the killing of the couple.

He claimed CBI had collected documentary proof to show that Shah was in constant touch with Vanzara,Pandian and others both before and after the killing of Prajapati.

Earlier,Additional Solicitor General Vivek Tankha submitted the Gujarat High Court had erroneously granted bail to Shah despite the fact that there was “clinching” evidence to prove the former Home Minister’s alleged involvement in the extortion racket culminating in the triple murder.

“The high court did not apply its mind while granting bail to the accused without considering his propensity to intimidate the witnesses,” he told the bench of justices Aftab Alam and Ranjana Prakash Desai.

Shah was granted bail by the high court in October last year. However,the apex court,on CBI’s appeal,directed Shah to remain out of Gujarat until it decided the agency’s plea for quashing of the bail.