Express News Service
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court recently dismissed a plea that alleged that a “mistrial” happened in MK Gandhi’s assassination case.
“It is the most misconceived petition under Article 32 of the Constitution. The parties cannot walk into the Supreme Court with any pleading or with any prayer they want,” a bench of Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Ahsanuddin Amanullah said in their order.
The bench also imposed a Rs 25,000 penalty on the petitioner and directed them to deposit the same towards the SC Advocates on Record Welfare Fund within four weeks.
The plea filed by the founder of Abhinav Bharat Congress Dr Pankaj K Phadnis had also challenged the provisions of the Bombay Public Measures (Delhi Amendment) Act, 1948 on the ground that its application had led to the implication of VD Savarkar in the case.
The trial court in June 1948 had pardoned Digambar Badge, accused in the case by involving the provisions of Bombay Public Security Measures (Delhi Amendment Act).
Badge had turned into an approver and Mr Savarkar was implicated in the trial on the basis of evidence given by Badge, who was an arms dealer regularly selling weapons to the Hindu Mahasabha.
Phadnis in his plea had also sought “partial atonement of the injustice done to Veer Savarkar” by directing the government to form an empowered committee of eminent persons, including representatives of Abhinav Bharat. The petitioner wanted to give scholarships to meritorious students for postgraduate studies abroad, as envisaged by Savarkar in 1944.
“The mala fide motive in prosecuting Veer Savarkar came to light when he was acquitted as prosecutors failed to produce any evidence to corroborate the flimsy evidence given by the approver. Even after acquittal, Savarkar was arrested again in 1949 and released only after he agreed not to participate in the 1952 elections. He died in 1966 without ever having participated in elections,” the petition stated.