Mumbai: The Supreme Court of India has issued a split verdict on a review petition filed by the Maharashtra government, challenging its earlier order to form a special investigation team (SIT) comprising both Hindu and Muslim senior police officers to probe the Akola riots of May 2023.
In the original judgment of 11 September 2025, the bench of Justices Sanjay Kumar and Satish Chandra Sharma had directed the State home secretary to constitute the SIT with officers from both communities, after finding serious lapses in the investigation of the riots.
When the Maharashtra government sought review of this order on the ground that it violated the principle of institutional secularism by dictating religious identity in police team composition, the two judges differed. Justice Kumar dismissed the review petition, reiterating that the earlier direction was necessary because the case “prima facie hinted at a religious bias” and that transparency and fairness called for inclusion of officers from both communities. He held that secularism must be "actuated in practice … rather than left on paper,” according to report by Live Law.
Justice Sharma took a contrasting view, recording that the specific issue of mandating religious identity in the SIT composition “requires consideration” and ordered the matter to be listed in open court in two weeks.
Because of the divergence, the matter will now be placed before the Chief Justice of India for assignment to an appropriate bench. The Akola riots had erupted following a social-media post, resulting in communal clashes, the death of one person and injury to others.
The Supreme Court had, earlier, criticised the Maharashtra Police for failing to register a First Information Report despite medical evidence. The new development underlines the tension between remedial measures for communal violence and principles of impartial institutional administration.
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