'It was their duty to take necessary step': Special CBI court acquits 3 cops accused in Ishrat Jahan encounter case

A special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court on Wednesday acquitted three cops accused in the Ishrat Jahan encounter case.

The three police officials - IPS officer GL Singhal, retired police officer Tarun Barot, and Anaju Chaudhari - filed discharge applications on March 20.

With the proceedings against the three officers dropped, the trial has practically come to an end unless the CBI appeals against the same.

The CBI court said the officers acted within the law and limits. According to intelligence input, the officers joined in to arrest Jahan and it cannot be accepted that Jahan was not a terrorist.

The court said that the Crime Branch had discharged their duty at the time of the incident and the three officers have been acquitted in the case.

Jahan, a 19-year-old girl of Mumbai, and three others - Javed Shaikh alias Pranesh Pillai, Amjadali Akbarali Rana and Zeeshan Johar were killed in an encounter with the police on the outskirts of Ahmedabad on June 15, 2004.

It was claimed by the Gujarat Police, that the four had terror links and had conspired to kill the then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi.