The Long Shadow of Justice: Gujarat High Court's Latest Verdict in the Sanjiv Bhatt Saga

Well, it seems the legal road for former IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt and his wife, Shweta Bhatt, just got a good deal bumpier. The Gujarat High Court, in a rather unequivocal move, recently dismissed two separate petitions they had brought forth, declaring them, rather bluntly, 'devoid of merit.' It’s a significant development, to be sure, in a saga that has, honestly, spanned decades and captured considerable attention.

One of those pleas, spearheaded by Sanjiv Bhatt himself, took aim at a report from a Magisterial Inquiry Committee. This particular report, you see, had cleared several police officers of any wrongdoing in a rather old — 1996, to be precise — drug seizure case. The case involved an advocate, Sumersingh Rajpurohit, and Bhatt, for his part, had vehemently argued that the committee’s findings were nothing short of 'pre-determined' and 'illegal.' He was, in essence, pushing for a full-blown CBI investigation, suggesting, perhaps, that the truth lay buried deeper.

And then there was Shweta Bhatt’s petition, which, while distinct, was deeply intertwined with her husband's long professional ordeal. She challenged the state government’s decision to treat Sanjiv Bhatt’s lengthy period of suspension — a stretch from 1996 all the way to 2007 — as time 'not on duty.' This isn't just a bureaucratic quibble; it carries considerable weight, directly impacting his pension and, really, all the other benefits tied to years of service. For once, you could say, it's about the tangible fallout of a very public career.

But Justice S. H. Vora, presiding over these matters, was evidently unswayed by either argument. In his judgment, he labeled both petitions as not only 'devoid of merit' but also 'misconceived.' It's strong language, certainly, indicating a definitive closing of this particular legal chapter. The court, it seems, found no justifiable reason to intervene or re-examine the issues as presented.

This isn't, of course, Sanjiv Bhatt's first rodeo with the legal system. His career, and indeed his personal liberty, have been marked by a series of high-profile, deeply contentious cases. We are talking about, among other things, his conviction in a 1990 custodial death case in Jamnagar, which led to a life imprisonment sentence. And, yes, there's also the infamous 1996 Palanpur drug planting case, where he stood accused of framing a lawyer. These aren’t just footnotes; they’re central threads in a complex tapestry.

He was, for clarity, suspended back in 1996 because of that very Palanpur case and eventually dismissed from service altogether in 2015. So, for the Bhatts, these dismissals from the High Court represent more than just a procedural setback; they underscore the ongoing challenges and the uphill battle in their quest for — well, for whatever it is they still seek from the justice system. The courts, at least for now, have spoken, and the path forward, if there is one, looks increasingly arduous.