Snooping on witness case: BJP leader, three others acquitted

Rajkot: Four persons including BJP leader Chhabil Patel accused of snooping on a key witness in the murder of former BJP MLA from Kutch Jayanti Bhanushali, were acquitted by a court in Gandhidham, Kutch on Tuesday. The court observed that the investigating agency did not produce necessary electronic evidence to prove the case.
Bhanushali was murdered in a moving train in January 2019. The key witness in his murder was his co-passenger Pawan More, a resident of Gandhidham. When Bhanushali was murdered, Patel one of the key accused in the case, was out of India.
The court on Tuesday acquitted Patel, Piyush Vasani, Rasik Patel and Komesh Pokar, who were booked under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 115 (abetment of offence punishable with death or imprisonment for life) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) for snooping on More.
While Chhabil Patel is a key accused in Bhanushali murder case, the other three accused in the alleged snooping case, are not accused in the murder case.
According to case details, after Bhanushali’s murder, More complained to the police that somebody was snooping on him and had done recce at his office, factory, home and other hangout places. Based on the primary investigation, an FIR was registered at Gandhidham B division police station in March 2019 against Chhabil Patel, Vasani, Rasik Patel and Komesh Pokar.
“The police in its chargesheet alleged that three people conducted recee at the behest of Chhabil Patel and wanted to kill More if they got a chance,” said Dilip Joshi, advocate representing the accused. But the prosecution could not prove their case in court, he added.
Haresh Kanthecha, another advocate of the accused said “The additional sessions judge M J Parasar acquitted all the accused. In the oral order, the court said the police could not provide electronic evidence to prove their case.”