SC to examine Sohrabuddin acquittal, won’t reopen Amit Shah discharge

The Supreme Court on Monday, 28 September, agreed to examine a plea challenging the Bombay High Court's May 7 order upholding the acquittal of all 22 accused, including 21 police personnel, in the 2005 alleged fake encounter of Sohrabuddin Shaikh, his wife Kausar Bi and aide Tulsiram Prajapati. A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana issued notice on the petition filed by Sohrabuddin's brother Nayabuddin Shaikh.

The bench said it would examine three or four key witness statements before deciding on the acquittals. Justice Bagchi noted that 92 of 210 prosecution witnesses had turned hostile, calling it a serious concern regarding a fair trial. Times Now and Bar and Bench report that the court clarified it would not revisit paragraph 43 of the High Court judgment that rejected a challenge to the discharge of Union Home Minister Amit Shah, who was Gujarat's home minister at the time.

According to the CBI, Sohrabuddin was killed in a staged encounter on November 26, 2005, near Ahmedabad. Kausar Bi was killed three days later. Prajapati, a key witness, was killed in another encounter in December 2006. The special CBI court in Mumbai acquitted all 22 accused in December 2018, and the High Court upheld that order in May 2026. The court sought responses from the CBI and the accused.

Update, 30 September 2026: The Supreme Court on 28 September issued notice on the plea against the acquittal of 22 accused. Bar and Bench reports that the court sought responses from the CBI and the accused. Times Now notes that the bench refused to revisit Amit Shah's discharge, while National Herald India adds that the case originally named 38 accused. The court will examine selected witness statements.