A city sessions court in Ahmedabad on Friday acquitted seven policemen in connection with the murder of Raju alias Kanti Thakkar, who died in Sardarnagar police custody in 2013. The accused were also charged with attempting to destroy evidence by trying to dispose of his body.
Court Ruling
Additional Sessions Judge M P Purohit acquitted PSI Babu Patel, Bhadreshsinh Jadeja, Jagdish Patel, Dharmendrasinh Rana, Mukesh Patel, Kanji Vihol, and Dhiraj Desai. The judge stated that the evidence presented by the prosecution could not establish their guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
Key Details
One of the accused, Assistant Sub-Inspector Ashok Bhatt, passed away during the trial. According to the prosecution, the other accused officers handed over Thakkar's custody to Bhatt and Desai. Bhatt allegedly beat Thakkar mercilessly, and together with Desai, disposed of his body. Thakkar's body was later recovered from the Sabarmati riverbed.
Thakkar had been detained on theft charges from a gambling den in Sarangpur. During the trial, the prosecution examined 66 witnesses. The court noted that Thakkar's custody was handed over to Bhatt, who had died. Due to the hostility of witnesses, the court refused to rely solely on the testimony of the investigator.
