Gujarat High Court Asks State To Decide In 6 Months Haren Pandya Murder Convict's Remission Plea
The Gujarat High Court has asked the state government to decide within six months the remission plea filed by Mohammed Asgar Ali convicted and sentenced to life for the murder of former state Home Minister Haren Pandya
Justice MR Mengdey in his order observed that from the jail remarks submitted on record it appeared that the process for consideration of the petitioner's case for grant of remission is underway and the opinion from the Advisory Committee has been received and the same shall be put up before the concerned authority in the near future.
The court said,
"Having regard to these aspect, the concerned authority shall take an appropriate decision, in accordance with law, on the application submitted by the petitioner for grant of remission, as expeditiously as possible, preferably within a period of 6 months from the date of receipt of the order. With the aforesaid observation, the present application is disposed of. IA also stands disposed of".
Pandya was shot dead on March 26, 2003 in Ahmedabad near Law Garden during morning walk.
According to the CBI, he was murdered to avenge the 2002 communal riots in the state. The appeals were filed by the CBI and the state police questioning the August 29, 2011 acquittal by the Gujarat High Court as being erroneous.
The trial court had convicted 12 persons for the murder of Pandya in June 2007. However, the High Court acquitted all of them in 2011, noting that the investigation was "botched" and "misdirected".
In 2019 Supreme Court had restored the conviction and sentence of accused in the murder case of former state Home Minister Haren Pandya in 2003.
The accused were earlier convicted for a larger conspiracy by a special POTA court on the basis of deposition of main accused Asghar Ali, who had admitted to their plan to attack prominent VHP and other Hindu leaders of Gujarat to avenge the 2002 riots.
The other accused are -- Mohammad Rauf, Mohammad Parvez Abdul Kayum Sheikh, Parvez Khan Pathan alias Athar Parvez, Mohammad Farooq alias Haji Farooq, Shahnawaz Gandhi, Kalim Ahmeda alias Kalimullah, Rehan Puthawala, Mohammad Riaz Sareswala, Aniz Machiswala, Mohammad Yunus Sareswala and Mohammad Saifuddin.
The case was earlier probed by the state police but later handed over to the CBI.
Case title: MOHAMMED ASGARALI MOHAMMAD VAJIRALI v/s STATE OF GUJARAT & ORS
R/SPECIAL CRIMINAL APPLICATION (DIRECTION) NO. 12305 of 2025,
CRIMINAL MISC.APPLICATION (PAROLE LEAVE) NO. 1 of 2025 In R/SPECIAL CRIMINAL APPLICATION NO. 12305 of 2025