Supreme Court to Examine 22 Acquittals in Sohrabuddin Shaikh Encounter Case, Won’t Reopen Amit Shah’s Discharge

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday agreed to examine a challenge to the acquittal of 22 accused in the Sohrabuddin Shaikh encounter case, while making it clear that the proceedings will not reopen Amit Shah’s discharge from the case.

A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, along with Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana, issued notices on a plea challenging the Bombay High Court’s May 7, 2026 judgment that upheld the acquittal of all 22 accused. The petition was filed by Sohrabuddin’s brother Rubabuddin Shaikh.

Supreme Court concerned over 92 hostile witnesses

During the hearing, the bench took note of the fact that 92 of the 210 witnesses examined during the trial had turned hostile.

Justice Joymalya Bagchi said the number was a matter of concern and raised the question of whether the trial had been fair and just. The Chief Justice said the court wanted to examine statements of some key witnesses rather than summon the entire trial record.

The court indicated that the petitioners could identify three or four important witness statements for the bench to examine while considering the challenge to the acquittals.

22 accused were acquitted

The case concerns the deaths of Sohrabuddin Shaikh, his wife Kausar Bi and his associate Tulsiram Prajapati.

Of the 22 people acquitted, 21 were police personnel from Gujarat and Rajasthan, while the remaining accused was the owner of a farmhouse in Gujarat where the prosecution alleged that Sohrabuddin and Kausar Bi had been illegally detained.

The special CBI court in Mumbai had acquitted all 22 accused in December 2018. Appeals filed by Sohrabuddin’s brothers were subsequently rejected by the Bombay High Court, which upheld the acquittals in May 2026.

What happened to Sohrabuddin and Kausar Bi?

According to the prosecution case, Sohrabuddin, Kausar Bi and Prajapati were travelling by bus from Hyderabad to Sangli in Maharashtra in November 2005 when they were allegedly taken into custody by a police team.

The CBI alleged that Sohrabuddin was killed near Ahmedabad on November 26, 2005, in an encounter involving Gujarat and Rajasthan police personnel. Kausar Bi was allegedly killed three days later.

Prajapati, who was considered a key witness in the case, was subsequently killed in another police encounter near the Gujarat-Rajasthan border on December 27, 2006.

The Supreme Court had earlier transferred the investigation to the CBI and shifted the trial from Gujarat to Mumbai. The Prajapati case was later clubbed with the Sohrabuddin proceedings.

Amit Shah’s discharge will not be reconsidered

The Supreme Court was categorical that it would not examine the challenge to Amit Shah’s discharge.

An application had sought to question the December 2014 order that discharged Shah from the case. However, the Bombay High Court had noted that challenges to his discharge had already been rejected by both the High Court and the Supreme Court.

During Monday’s hearing, Justice Bagchi indicated that the issue was closed and the bench would not enter into the relevant portion of the Bombay High Court judgment concerning Shah’s discharge.

The current proceedings are therefore focused on the validity of the acquittals of the 22 people who stood trial, rather than reopening Shah’s earlier discharge.

Supreme Court to examine whether trial was fair

The court's decision to issue notices does not itself overturn the acquittals. Instead, the bench will examine the challenge and selected witness material before deciding whether the acquittal judgments require further judicial intervention.

The next stage of the proceedings will therefore focus on the evidence cited by the petitioners, particularly in light of the large number of witnesses who turned hostile during the trial.