Video at Amdavad jail

Ahmedabad, 24 November 2012

Additional Metropolitan Magistrate AA Khan in Mumbai court Friday remanded nine police officers in gangster/terrorist Sohrabuddin Sheikh shootout case to judicial custody till December 7.

The Supreme Court bench led by Justice Aftab Alam had shifted the trial to Mumbai in September.

Khan directed the Superintendent of the Arthur Road prison to submit a report by Monday on whether the nine accused can be lodged there. If the accused cannot be lodged at Arthur Road prison, they will be lodged in another jail in the city or state, Khan said.

Khan rejected an application of the state of Gujarat which said “there is imminent threat and danger to the life and safety of the accused”, and that an attack has been planned against them.The application urged the metropolitan court to conduct the proceedings of the case via the video conference facility available at Sabarmati Jail in Ahmedabad, Gujarat where they were previously lodged.

The nine include suspended IPS officers D.G. Vanzara, Rajkumar Pandian and Dinesh M.N. Vanzara enjoys Z-category security.

Two other accused police officers, Abhay Chudasama and N.K. Amin, did not appear before the court due to health problems, and are lodged at Nadiad jail and Vadodara Central Jail in Gujarat, respectively.