Ex-IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt acquitted in 1997 custodial torture case; court cites lack of evidence
Porbandar: A court in Gujarat's Porbandar has acquitted former IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt in a 1997 custodial torture case, citing that the prosecution could not "prove the case beyond reasonable doubt."
Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Mukesh Pandya on Saturday acquitted Bhatt, who was the Superintendent of Police (SP) of Porbandar at the time, of charges under IPC sections related to causing grievous hurt to obtain a confession and other provisions. The court gave Bhatt the benefit of the doubt due to the lack of concrete evidence in the case.
Details of the case
The case stemmed from an incident involving Bhatt and Constable Vajubhai Chau, who were charged in 2013 under sections 330 (causing hurt to extort confession) and 324 (causing hurt with dangerous weapons) of the Indian Penal Code. The charges were filed after a complaint by one Naran Jadav, who accused Bhatt and Chau of torturing him in police custody in 1997. Jadav alleged that the torture was done to extract a confession in connection with a Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (Prevention) Act (TADA) and Arms Act case.
The complaint stated that Jadav was subjected to electric shocks on various parts of his body, including his private parts, and his son was also tortured. Jadav later informed a judicial magistrate about the torture, prompting an inquiry that led to the registration of the case in December 1998.
Court’s ruling
In its ruling, the court noted that the prosecution failed to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the complainant was forced to confess under duress, using dangerous weapons or threats. The court also highlighted that the necessary sanction to prosecute Bhatt, who was a public servant discharging his duties at the time, had not been obtained.
Previous legal issues for Bhatt
Sanjiv Bhatt has a history of legal troubles. He was previously sentenced to life imprisonment in a 1990 custodial death case in Jamnagar and also sentenced to 20 years in prison in a 1996 case relating to planting drugs to frame a Rajasthan-based lawyer in Palanpur. Bhatt is currently serving his sentence in the Rajkot Central Jail.
In March 2024, Bhatt was also convicted for his role in the 1990 Jamnagar custodial death case and sentenced to 20 years imprisonment for planting drugs to frame the lawyer in the 1996 Palanpur case.
Bhatt’s involvement in the 2002 Gujarat riots case
Apart from his involvement in custodial torture and deaths, Bhatt is also an accused in the alleged fabrication of evidence in connection with the 2002 Gujarat riots. He is facing charges along with activist Teesta Setalvad and former Gujarat Director General of Police RB Sreekumar.
Bhatt had filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court alleging then Chief Minister Narendra Modi's involvement in the riots, but these allegations were later debunked by a Special Investigation Team (SIT).
Bhatt’s suspension and removal from service
Bhatt was suspended from service in 2011 and was later sacked by the Ministry of Home Affairs in August 2015 for "unauthorized absence." The Gujarat government had removed him from service earlier.
In response to the Gujarat High Court’s decision in January 2024, Bhatt moved the Supreme Court challenging the ruling that upheld his conviction in the Jamnagar case. The High Court had affirmed the verdict of the Sessions Court, convicting Bhatt and his co-accused Pravinsinh Zala under sections 302 (murder), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC.
Bhatt, as the then Additional SP, had detained around 150 people following a communal riot in Jamjodhpur town in October 1990, after the 'bandh' call against the halting of BJP leader LK Advani's 'rath yatra' for the construction of a Ram temple in Ayodhya.
One of the detained individuals, Prabhudas Vaishnani, died in the hospital after his release.
(Agency inputs)