SC junks plea for fresh probe into Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected a plea seeking fresh investigation into the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi, saying it was not convinced there was any need.

The bench of Justice S A Bobde and Justice L Nageswara Rao dismissed the plea by Pankaj Kumudchandra Phadnis, who had sought reinvestigation of the assassination on the basis of fresh material which, he said, was not available earlier and pointed to the involvement of an unseen hand in it.

“We are, however, not satisfied that new research into a long concluded matter justifies a re-initiation of criminal investigation or that anything that might be stated should be allowed to reopen a case such as this,” their order said.

The court said that the “criminal cases which result in conviction and even execution of death sentences and the demise of those who have served life sentences ought not to be reviewed, neither is there a provision in law for review”.

Addressing the contention that the nation had a right to know the truth, it said: “.... such a right cannot be invoked where the truth is already well-known merely because some academic research raises a different perspective in law. This would amount to reopening issues based on hearsay.”

The court said that it was constrained to say this because Nathuram Godse was convicted on the basis of the evidence of eyewitnesses who were present at the prayer meeting.

“The meeting itself was attended by innumerable people. Each one of the eye-witnesses described how Godse moved forward and shot Gandhiji.”