Ishrat encounter case: Suspended IPS officer Pandey gets bail

Ahmedabad, Feb 5: Suspended IPS officer PP Pandey was on Thursday granted bail by a special CBI court here in the 2004 case of fake encounter of Ishrat Jahan and three others after remaining in jail for 18 months.

Special Judge K R Upadhyaya granted bail to Additional Director General of Police Pandey on executing a personal bond of Rs one lakh with two surety bonds.

He was in jail since July 2013 when he surrendered before the court. The CBI court also directed Pandey, who was the Joint Police Commissioner of the city at the time of offence in 2004, to submit his passport and asked him not to leave the country without its prior permission.

The court has also put a condition that Pandey will not make any attempt which can hamper the investigation of the case and also will not try to influence any witness associated with the case.

Pandey has to appear before the CBI court on every Thursday and he has to remain present during the trial, the court order said. Pandey was the Joint Commissioner of Police when Mumbra-based 19-year-old college girl Ishrat Jahan, Pranesh Pillai alias Javed Sheikh, Amjad Ali Rana and Zeeshan Johar were killed by Ahmedabad crime branch sleuths in an encounter on the outskirts of the city on June 15, 2004.

According to CBI, it was a fake encounter orchestrated jointly by Gujarat police and IB. During the hearing of the case, senior Advocate Nirupam Nanavati who argued on behalf of Pandey, said that his client was booked in the case on the behest of other IPS officer Satish Verma.

Nanavati also maintained that the CBI had not arrested IB officials, but only acted against the Gujarat police officials. Public prosecutor for CBI LD Tiwari, while opposing the bail, said Pandey was part of the conspiracy that had led to elimination of four persons.

Tiwari also said that Pandey is an influential person who can affect the investigation in the case.

PTI