Sohrabuddin Fake Encounter Case: All 22 Accused To Walk Free As Bombay High Court Upholds 2018 Acquittal

New Delhi: The Bombay High Court on Monday upheld the acquittal of all 22 accused in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh alleged fake encounter case, dismissing appeals filed against the 2018 trial court verdict. The accused included 21 police personnel from Gujarat, Rajasthan and Andhra Pradesh.

A division bench comprising Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice Gautam Ankhad dismissed the appeals filed by Sohrabuddin Sheikh’s brothers, Rubabuddin and Nayabuddin Sheikh, who had challenged the acquittal order passed by a special CBI court in December 2018.

The High Court upheld the findings of the trial court, which had concluded that the prosecution failed to prove the charges of conspiracy and murder beyond reasonable doubt.

The appeals filed by Sheikh’s brothers sought either the quashing of the trial court judgement or directions for a retrial under Section 386(a) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973.

The matter had been pending before the High Court since 2019, and the judgement was reserved earlier this year before being pronounced on Monday.

What is Sohrabuddin Sheikh Fake Encounter Case? 

The case dates back to November 2005, when Sohrabuddin Sheikh was killed in what Gujarat Police described as an encounter near Ahmedabad. According to the prosecution case, Sheikh and his wife Kauser Bi were allegedly taken off a bus travelling from Hyderabad to Sangli by Gujarat ATS personnel on November 23, 2005.

Three days later, Sheikh was killed in an encounter near Vishala Circle on the outskirts of Ahmedabad. Kauser Bi later went missing and was allegedly killed, with her body reportedly burnt.

A year later, in December 2006, Sheikh’s associate Tulsiram Prajapati was also killed in another police encounter near the Gujarat-Rajasthan border after police claimed he had escaped custody.

The matter eventually came under investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) following directions from the Supreme Court.

On December 21, 2018, a special CBI court acquitted all 22 accused, including serving and retired police officials.

In its 358-page judgment, the trial court observed that the prosecution had failed to present conclusive evidence establishing a criminal conspiracy or proving the alleged murders.

During the course of the trial, 210 witnesses were examined, but 92 of them reportedly turned hostile or changed their earlier statements, significantly weakening the prosecution’s case.

The court had noted that convictions could not be based merely on suspicion or moral grounds in the absence of legally sustainable evidence.

The case remained one of the country’s most high-profile encounter cases for nearly two decades and witnessed multiple investigations, legal proceedings and political controversy.

According to police records cited during investigations, Sohrabuddin Sheikh faced several criminal cases, including allegations related to extortion, arms smuggling and murder. However, the central issue before the courts was whether the encounters involving Sheikh, Kauser Bi and Tulsiram Prajapati were staged.

Several senior police officials were named in the case over the years. Former Gujarat minister Amit Shah was also named during the investigation phase but was later discharged from the case by the court.

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