Sohrabuddin case: will not reopen Amit Shah’s discharge, says SC

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday made it clear that Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s discharge from the Sohrabuddin Shaikh encounter case will not be reopened, even as it agreed to examine whether the acquittal of 22 other accused followed a fair and just trial, Bar and Bench reported.

A Bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant and comprising Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana issued notice to the CBI and the 22 acquitted persons on a challenge to the Bombay High Court’s decision upholding their acquittal. The proceedings, however, will not revisit the separate judicial findings that led to Shah’s discharge, which have already attained finality.

Instead, the court indicated that its scrutiny would focus on the acquittal of those who actually stood trial. It wants to examine selected witness statements that could shed light on whether the proceedings were conducted fairly, particularly in view of the extraordinary number of witnesses who withdrew support from the prosecution.

The bench flagged the fact that 92 of the 210 witnesses examined during the trial had turned hostile, describing the figure as a serious concern. The court indicated that it would examine relevant witness statements before deciding whether there was sufficient basis to question the acquittals.

The case concerns allegations that Sohrabuddin Shaikh, his wife Kausar Bi and associate Tulsiram Prajapati were killed in staged encounters. A special CBI court in Mumbai acquitted all 22 accused in 2018, and the Bombay High Court upheld the acquittals in May 2026.