Ahmedabad:

A special CBI court here today completed the hearing on the discharge petition of former in-charge DGP P P Pandey in Ishrat Jahan encounter case and has put the next date in the matter on January 23 when it was likely to pronounce its verdict.

Pandey has appeared in person in the CBI court here along with another accused in the case Tarun Barot.

Ishrat Jahan, a college student from Mumbai and suspected LeT operative along with her boy friend and two Pakistani nationals were gunned down by Gujarat police on June 15, 2004.

P P Pandey and several other police officials were made accused in the matter which according to CBI was a fake encounter.

Pandey who was also earlier jailed in the matter with other police officials and was later taken back in to service but had to resign from the post of in-charge DGP for his being an accused in the case, had filed discharge petition before the CBI court hearing the matter.

DeshGujarat