Fake encounter: Supreme Court grants bail to former cop Pradeep Sharma after Maharashtra says no objection

The Supreme Court on Friday granted bail to convicted former cop Pradeep Sharma in connection with a fake encounter case of 2006. [Pradeep Rameshwar Sharma vs State of Maharashtra].A Bench of Justices Hrishikesh Roy and Prashant Kumar Mishra passed an order to this effect after the counsel for the Maharashtra government said it had no objection to grant of bail.Sharma was directed to surrender within a week before the Greater Mumbai sessions court to apply for bail, subject to terms and conditions..The Bombay High Court had on March 19 convicted Sharma in the fake encounter case and sentenced him to life imprisonment, leading to the present appeal.The case arose from the encounter killing of Ramnarayan Gupta alias Lakhan Bhaiya, an alleged member of Chhota Rajan’s gang.Gupta and his friend were picked up on November 11, 2006 in a suburb area in Mumbai and Gupta was killed on the same day in a fake encounter.The case was registered in 2009 after a special investigation team found that a rival had paid police to kill Gupta. The SIT was formed on the basis of a High Court order directing registration of FIR.After a 5-year long trial, a sessions court in Mumbai acquitted Sharma in July 2013 but convicted 21 people including 13 police personnel. While three of the policemen were convicted of murder, the remaining 18 were convicted for abetment.The State government challenged the acquittal order before High Court claiming that the encounter had been staged. The police officers too filed appeals challenging their conviction.After an extensive hearing. the High Court eventually found merit in the submissions of the State and convicted Sharma.It also upheld the convictions of 12 other police officers and a civilian, Hitesh Solanki.A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Gauri V Godse of the High Court set aside the order of the sessions court acquitting Sharma.This led to the instant appeal by Sharma before the apex court.The Supreme Court had in April sought the response of the Maharashtra government to the plea filed by Sharma challenging his conviction and life sentence in the 2006 fake encounter case. The apex court had also granted Sharma exemption from surrendering before authorities until further orders.It eventually granted bail to Sharma today after the State acceded to the request for bail. Senior Counsel Mukul Rohatgi and Sidharth Luthra appeared for Sharma. Senior Advocate R Basant appeared for brother of the deceased while advocate Siddharth Dharmadhikari represented the State of Maharashtra..Sharma was in the news in a couple of years ago after he was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in connection with the Antilia bomb threat and the connected case of murder of businessman Mansukh Hiren in 2021.He was granted bail by the Supreme Court in that case in August 2023.