Supreme Court Rejects Review Pleas Of 9 Convicts In Haren Pandya Murder Case

The Supreme Court has dismissed the pleas filed by nine convicts, who were awarded life term for murdering former Gujarat home minister Haren Pandya in 2003, seeking review of its verdict holding them guilty.

The review petitions did not mention any error apparent on the face of record in its July 5 this year judgement, the top court said.

"We have perused the review petitions and record of the appeals and are convinced that the order, of which review has been sought, does not suffer from any error apparent warranting its reconsideration. The review petitions are, accordingly, dismissed," said a bench of justices Arun Mishra and Vineet Saran.

In its July 5 verdict, the top court had set aside the Gujarat High Court judgement acquitting the nine accused the murder case.

It had restored the trial court''s order that had held 12 persons guilty of various offences in the case and had awarded jail term ranging from five years to life imprisonment to them.

Mr Pandya was home minister in the then Narendra Modi-led Gujarat government and was shot dead on March 26, 2003 near Law Garden in Ahmedabad.

According to the CBI, Mr Pandya was killed to avenge the 2002 communal riots in Gujarat.

Regarding the three other accused -- Mohmed Abdul Rauf, Mohd Shafiuddin and Shahnawaz Gandhi -- the top court had said since the CBI had not preferred to file any appeal against the lower court''s verdict absolving them of murder charges before the high court, "no further interference" was required.