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As Setalvad gets bail, kin of co-accused ex-DGP say ‘gives us lot of hope’

Gujarat ex-DGP R B Sreekumar, who was arrested along with Setalvad on June 25, has not moved a higher court seeking bail, after his plea along with Setalvad’s was turned down by the Ahmedabad Sessions Court.

 

Mumbai-based activist Teesta Setalvad and Gujarat ex-DGP R B Sreekumar were arrested on June 25. ( Express Photo By Deepak Joshi/File)

 

As the Supreme Court Friday granted interim bail to Mumbai-based activist Teesta Setalvad on charges of allegedly fabricating evidence related to the 2002 Gujarat riots, the family of co-accused R B Sreekumar said they had reason to “hope”.

The daughter of the retired Gujarat DGP, Deepa Srijith, told The Indian Express: “The verdict gives us a lot of hope.”

Sreekumar, who was arrested along with Setalvad on June 25, has not moved a higher court seeking bail, after his plea along with Setalvad’s was turned down by the Ahmedabad Sessions Court.

The family did not clarify why it had not re-applied for bail after the Sessions Court rejection.

While granting bail to Setalvad, the Supreme Court said that co-accused in the case shall not take advantage of the relief granted to her. “It is further made clear that the relief of interim bail is granted to the appellant in the peculiar facts, including the fact that she happens to be a lady. This shall not be taken to be a reflection and shall not be used by other accused, as and when such occasions arise. The submissions of the accused shall be considered purely on their own merits.”

On Thursday, the Supreme Court questioned the Gujarat High Court’s decision to list Setalvad’s bail plea for hearing on September 19, almost six weeks after it issued notice, wondering if this was the “standard practice in Gujarat” and asking the state government “what kind of material have you gathered in the last two months” against her.

Denying bail to Sreekumar and Setalvad on July 30, the Ahmedabad Sessions Court had observed that doing so “would impliedly encourage the wrong (doers) that in-spite of doing such type of accusations against the then C.M. (Narendra Modi) and others, the Court has lightly enlarged the accused on bail”.

Setalvad and Sreekumar, along with former IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt, were arrested on charges, among others, of conspiracy and fabrication of evidence. The FIR quoted the Supreme Court order from a day earlier, upholding the clean chit by the SIT to then CM Modi in the 2002 riots, saying it “clearly establishes that Sanjiv Bhatt, R B Sreekumar, Teesta Setalvad and others had conspired to abuse the process of law by fabricating false evidence to make several persons to be convicted for an offence that is punishable with capital punishment”.

Bhatt is serving life sentence in a custodial torture case.
Incidentally, on September 6, the Supreme Court is due to hear a CBI plea challenging the anticipatory bail granted by the Kerala High Court to Sreekumar, among other accused IPS officers, in the alleged ISRO espionage case.

The original piece may be read here