SC to hear pleas on 22 fake encounters in Gujarat, when Modi was CM

New Delhi, Dec 3: The Supreme Court will hear a plea on the 22 alleged fake encounters that took place in Gujarat when Narendra Modi was the Chief Minister of the state.

The petitions were filed by veteran journalist, B G Verghese and lyricist, Javed Akhtar. They alleged that the case relating to the 22 encounters must be heard by the Supreme Court. The court said that the petitions need to heard.

Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi also recorded that a report by former Supreme Court judge, Justice H S Bedi on the issue has already been filed in the court.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, however intervened and said that the Justice Bedi report on the 22 fake encounters must not be made public. This needs to be dealt with a sense of responsibility, he added.

The court allowed him to file an affidavit. When Mehta said that the matter should be posted following the Christmas break of the Supreme Court, the CJI refused to accede to the request. The matter has been posted for December 12.

In March this year, the Supreme Court appointed committee had submitted its report in the court. The committee was appointed to probe alleged fake encounters in Gujarat between 2002 and 2007.

The court had asked the committee to look into whether the encounters showed a pattern that people from the minority community were targeted as terrorists.

The panel was set up after Akthar, Verghese and activist Shabnam Hashmi moved the court seeing a judicial probe against the Gujarat government.