Ex-IPS Officer Acquitted in Decades-Old Custodial Torture Case

A Gujarat court acquitted former IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt in a 1997 custodial torture case due to insufficient evidence. Bhatt, previously sentenced to life imprisonment for a separate custodial death in 1990 and 20 years for another case in 1996, remains incarcerated in Rajkot Central Jail.

In a significant legal development, a court in Gujarat's Porbandar has acquitted former IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt in a 1997 custodial torture case. The court's decision was based on the inability of the prosecution to prove the case beyond reasonable doubt.

Additional chief judicial magistrate Mukesh Pandya acquitted Bhatt, who was the superintendent of police in Porbandar during the time of the incident. The lack of sufficient evidence led to Bhatt receiving the benefit of the doubt.

Sanjiv Bhatt, previously convicted and imprisoned in separate cases, including a 1990 custodial death case, continues to serve his sentence at Rajkot Central Jail. His legal battles have been widely controversial, drawing attention due to his allegations concerning the 2002 Gujarat riots.

(With inputs from agencies.)