Fake encounter Police custody of IPS officers extended till May 5

Ahmedabad, May 1 (UNI) Police remand of three IPS officers, arrested in connection with Gujarat fake encounter case, was today extended till May 5.

D G Vanjhara (Deputy Inspector General Gujarat Border Range), R K Pandian (Superintendent in Intelligence Bureau) and Dinesh Kumar (Rajasthan Police) were produced before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate K J Upadhyay. The prosecution had sought ten-day police custody on the grounds that they needed time for further interrogation to unearth the ''motive and conspiracy''.

Time was also sought to probe into the case property which was supposedly used in the crime.

The three police officials were arrested on April 24 for allegedly killing Soharabuddin Sheikh, his wife Kauser Bi and eye witness Tulsiram Prajapati in separate shootouts.

Defence counsel Mitesh Amin argued that no further custody should be granted since the prosecution has not cited any fresh reasons for the same. Besides, the accused were fully cooperating and not hampering the investigation, he argued.

Meanwhile, a large number of villagers from Ilol in Sabarkantha district, from where Vanjhara hails, gathered in the court and raised slogans in support of the arrested IPS officer.

Gujarat government, in the dock for the ghastly incident, yesterday admitted before the Supreme Court that Kauser Bi, wife of Sohrabuddin, was also killed on November 28, 2005 and her body was burnt by the police.

She was earlier shown missing in the police record.

The apex court will decide on Thursday on a CBI probe into the incident.

A resident of Bhopal, Soharabuddin was killed in an encounter by Gujarat and Rajasthan police on November 26, 2005 on the outskirts of Ahmedabad city, after being branded a terrorist.

UNI