Guj HC issues notice to accused in Pandya murder case

The Gujarat High Court today issued notice to a man accused in the case related to the murder of BJP leader Haren Pandya after CBI challenged a sessions court's order allowing him to have his passport back.
The sessions court here allowed Mohammad Junaid Sheikh to have his passport back, surrendered earlier when he was given bail by the high court.
Justice J B Pardiwala issued notice to Sheikh today.
The high court last April had quashed the four-year sentence awarded by the special POTA court to him, with the condition that he paid a fine of Rs 21 lakh.

Sheikh, while seeking his passport, argued he had fulfilled the high court's condition by depositing the money.
But CBI opposed the lower court's order on the passport, saying it had already filed an appeal in the Supreme Court against the high court order setting aside the prison term.

Sheikh had been declared an absconder when CBI filed charge sheet against him for abetment in the Pandya murder case.
After the POTA court convicted 12 people in the case in July 2007, Sheikh surrendered. The trial court eventually acquitted him in murder case, but sentenced him to four years in jail for absconding earlier.

Pandya, a former minister in the Narendra Modi-led government in Gujarat, was shot dead in Ahmedabad on March 26, 2003.