Maharashtra spares cop for Gujarat riots probe
August 31st, 2010 - 11:57 pm ICT by IANSNew Delhi, Aug 31 (IANS) The Supreme Court was told by the Maharashtra government Tuesday that it was making its senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer K. Venkateshan available to the Special Investigating Team (SIT) probing the 2002 post-Godhra riot cases.
The court was told that the state government has already written to the union home ministry about it.
An apex court bench of Justice D.K. Jain, Justice P. Sathasivam and Justice Aftab Alam was told that Venkateshan would be relieved shortly.
When the court asked if relieving Venkateshan could be expedited within a week, state government counsel Sanjay Kardia said that the officer would be available to SIT within the said period.
Venkateshan is currently posted as inspector general of police (IGP) in the Office of Maharashtra police chief.
The SIT is an apex court appointed investigating team that probing the Godhra and post-Godhra riot cases. It needed two senior ranking officers after Gujarat cadre IPS officers Geetha Johri and Shivanand Jha were moved out of the probe panel by the apex court.
A senior Assam cadre IPS officer Y.K. Modi has already joined the SIT.
During the course of the last hearing of the matter, the SIT chairman and former CBI director R.K. Raghavan told the court that Maharashtra government was not willing to release Venkateshan for the SIT.
Thereafter, the apex court issued notice to the Maharashtra government on this issue.
- IPS officer probing Sohrabuddin case offers to quit - Jan 21, 2010
- Chidambaram backing 'delinquent' cops, says BJP - Aug 13, 2011
- Zakia satisfied with key Gujarat cops' removal from SIT - Apr 06, 2010
- Gujarat top cop Sanjiv Bhatt quizzed by CBI - Aug 25, 2011
- Apex court removes two Gujarat cops from riots probe panel - Apr 06, 2010
- Gujarat riots probe team gives report to apex court - Apr 26, 2011
- Gujarat riots: SIT to probe officials' inaction - Aug 19, 2010
- Godhra riot case: Apex court affords Modi relief (Second Lead) - Mar 26, 2012
- Godhra riot case: Relief for Modi - Mar 26, 2012
- Supreme Court stays trial of Sanjiv Bhatt (Second Lead) - Apr 20, 2012
- Supreme Court pulls up Teesta Setalvad - Jan 20, 2011
- Top cop implicates Modi in Gujarat riots (Roundup) - Apr 22, 2011
- SIT questions Togadia for role in 2002 Gujarat riots case - May 10, 2010
- Ahmedabad court to pronounce verdict in Godhra riots case tomorrow - Feb 21, 2011
- Maharashtra top cop seeks to opt out of Ishrat Jahan probe - Jun 25, 2011
Tags: aftab, alam, apex, apex court, assam, cbi, court bench, government counsel, gujarat, indian police service, jain, jha, kardia, maharashtra government, police chief, raghavan, riots, sanjay, shivanand, union home ministry