The Bombay High Court has granted bail to police constable Vikram Singh of the Haryana police, who is an accused in the 2016 alleged fake encounter of gangster Sandeep Gadoli.
Justice PD Naik granted bail to Singh observing the trial will take a long time to conclude and that he has been in prison for the last seven years.
The court said, “It is not clear as to when the trial will be over. The Supreme Court in several decisions has granted bail to the accused on the ground of long incarceration in custody. Considering these circumstances, the case of grant of bail is made out.”
Eight accused were arrested for their alleged complicity
In all eight accused were arrested for their alleged complicity in Gadoli’s encounter. Of these, five have been released on bail, including model Divya Pahuja and her mother Sonia.
Justice Naik noted that the prosecution has proposed to examine several witnesses. However, the trial has just commenced and only the second witness is being examined.
According to the prosecution, Singh and other police officers were involved in the fake encounter of Gadoli.
Singh’s counsels — Aabad Ponda and Samsher Garud — contended that he had surrendered before the police and was shown arrested on July 12, 2016. The chargesheet was filed on October 4.
Process of examining witnesses is yet to be completed
His plea contends that the charges were framed in the case on November 14, 2019. The first witness was examined on November 2, 2022. The second witness was examined on March 9, 2023, and the process is yet to be completed.
He had said that he had not delayed the trial.
The CCTV footage of the hotel where Gadoli was gunned down was produced by the prosecution. It showed that Singh had pushed a firearm lying on the ground. Ponda countered this saying that Singh was not involved in the firing at Gadoli and could, at the most, be charged with changing the scene of the offence or concealing evidence.
Special Public Prosecutor Amin Solkar opposed Singh's bail plea on the grounds that he was involved in the fake encounter. Solkar said that Singh was present at the scene of the crime and the offence was of a serious nature. He also said that the prosecution had challenged the bail granted to other accused before the Supreme Court. However, the bench granted bail to Singh by executing a bond of ₹1 lakh.
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