Gujarat HC order on Ishrat case stayed

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday stayed the Gujarat High Court order directing transfer of the Ishrat Jahan fake encounter case probe from state police to the apex court-constituted Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by former CBI director R K Raghavan.


Taking cue from the SC's objection last week to HC's order entrusting the probe to SIT, Ishrat's mother through counsel Kamini Jaiswal told a Bench comprising Justices B Sudershan Reddy and S S Nijjar that unless the HC order was stayed, the state could issue a notification to that effect.

Shamima Kauser, in her application, sought a stay of that part of the HC's August 12 order asking the Narendra Modi government to issue a notification regarding further investigation to be conducted by SIT.

The Bench felt it appropriate to stay transfer of probe to SIT as the latter had already moved an application before the HC expressing its inability to investigate the case.

The application followed remarks made by the Special Bench of the SC hearing post-Godhra riots cases. The special Bench had said SIT was not a statutory body but one that was created by SC for a specific purpose and no other forum could ask it to investigate any other matter.

On April 19, the SC had referred Kauser's petition seeking CBI probe into Ishrat fake encounter case to the HC saying it would be in a better position to appreciate the facts and circumstances of the case.