The Bombay high court on Tuesday granted interim protection from arrest to two police officers who are accused in the disappearance of a witness in the 2008 Malegaon blast case.
The Bombay high court on Tuesday granted interim protection from arrest to two police officers who are accused in the disappearance of a witness in the 2008 Malegaon blast case. The court also asked them to approach the Madhya Pradesh court as it had issued a non-bailable warrant against them.
ACP Rajan Ghule and Ramesh More had filed the anticipatory bail application in the high court, following which the magistrate court of Indore issued a non-bailable warrant against them.
Both Gule and More are accused in the disappearance of witness Dilip Patidar in the 2008 Malegaon blast case.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) did not get the sanction to prosecute these two accused and had, therefore, filed a closure report in the MP court. But the Madhya Pradesh court refused to accept the report and issued the non-bailable warrant against them.
On Tuesday, Justice Revati Mohite-Dere granted the accused three weeks’ protection from arrest but before that, both the officers would have to have to approach the Indore court.
Ghule and More arrested Patidar on October 10 2008 after the Malegaon blast and brought him to Kalachowki police station for interrogation.
One of the absconding accused, Ramji Kalsangra, was put up in a place by Patidar. So, Ghule and More thought that they would get some lead in the case to arrest Kalsangra. On November 17 2008, Patidar had allegedly spoken with his wife and told her that he was being tortured in the custody.
After some days Patidar went missing the two officers told his family that he had gone to his native place to bring evidence but did not return. Patidar’s family then moved to the Madhya Pradesh high court, which told the CBI to investigate the matter. In its report, the CBI accused More and Ghule of kidnapping, wrongful confinement and criminal conspiracy.
