GPP demands reinvestigation in Haren Pandya murder case

The Keshubhai Patel-led Gujarat Parivartan Party today demanded a reinvestigation by CBI into the murder of former Gujarat minister Haren Pandya and said the "real killers" were still to be booked.
"The CBI should re-investigate the murder of Haren Pandya, who was Minister of State for Home in the (erstwhile) Gujarat government," Keshubhai told reporters after paying tributes to Pandya on his 10th death anniversary here.
The slain leader's wife, Jagruti Pandya, also sought reinvestigation of the case by CBI.
"I have said this earlier also and I reiterate it again that the CBI should probe the case again and bring to book the real killers. Nobody has been convicted in the case," Jagruti Pandya told PTI today.

"If the state government is with us, our demand will get a push," she said.
Jagruti had contested the state Assembly elections in December last on GPP ticket from Ellisbridge, from where Haren Pandya was elected as MLA. Rakesh Shah of BJP is the sitting MLA from there.

Pandya was shot dead on March 26, 2003, near Law Garden area of the city when he had gone for a morning walk.
The case was transferred to CBI, which had stated in its charge sheet that the murder was carried out to avenge the 2002 riots.
In 2007, a special POTA court had convicted 12 accused in the case out of total 15 who were nabbed.

The court had sentenced nine persons to life imprisonment while two others were awarded seven-year prison each and another person was handed a five-year-jail term. The main accused, Ashgar Ali, was sentenced to remain in prison for life.
Following the appeal by convicts in the Gujarat High Court, the HC had in 2011 ordered acquittal of 12 people of murder charges and said the probe by the central agency in the case was "washed up, blinkered and had left lot to desire."
The High Court judgement had raised a question mark on who killed Pandya, as all the accused were let off.