Who Is Sanjiv Bhatt, Former IPS Officer Sacked In 2015 And Jailed Since 2018? (Photo screengrab on X@sanjivbhatt)

For Sanjiv Bhatt, a former IPS officer who took on current Prime Minister Narendra Modi, life has been very challenging for a prolonged period. From stagnation in his career as an IPS officer to imprisonment, the professional life of the former top police officer, started in 1988, has been marred by courageous stands and the resultant controversies. Since joining the force in 1988, Bhatt has faced several allegations, culminating in his imprisonment. The 62-year-old has been behind the bar since 2018.

Bhatt gained national attention while serving as Gujarat Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence, overseeing then-state chief minister Narendra Modi’s security during the early 2000s. It was also a time marked by the Godhra train burning and the subsequent Gujarat riots, which killed nearly a thousand people, mostly Muslims, events that probably turning his fate upside down.

Read Also: Gujarat Court Acquits Sanjiv Bhatt IPS In 1997 Custodial Torture Case

Bhatt emerged in the public eye with his affidavit against the then chief minister Narendra Modi regarding his role in the riots in 2011, nine years after the carnage. As one of the chief security officers, Bhatt claimed to have attended a meeting in which the then chief minister allegedly asked the police personnel to let Hindus vent their anger against the Muslims. Notably, the allegations were later dismissed by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) appointed by the Supreme Court. However, Bhatt accused the SIT of attempting to conceal the truth behind the 2002 riots.

Bhatt was echoing the remark made by former Gujarat Home Minister Haren Pandya, who was purportedly one of the important witnesses and had accused the then Gujarat administration of allowing the 2002 riots giving freehand to Hindu mobs. Pandya, who was later murdered by unidentified men, had even testified about the matter before the Concerned Citizens Tribunal (CCT). He had said that the then chief minister had asked the police officials not to come in the way of the Hindu backlash.

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It was in 2011 that the Gujarat government suspended Bhatt from the police service. In 2015, the Union Government dismissed him from the post over an unauthorized absence. His fellow IPS officer, Amitabh Thakur, called Bhatt’s sacking by the Union Government ‘tantamount to him receiving a gallantry award.’ “Bhatt’s adherence to his conscience even at the cost of the prices (sic) he had to pay… makes him feel proud of being an IPS officer, at a time when he finds so many IPS officers kneeling to the ground for petty gains,” The Economic Times quoted Thakur in 2015.

Bhatt was also accused of alleged fabrication of evidence in connection with the 2002 Gujarat riots. He faced transfer, which many say is a ‘punishment’, as the superintendent of Sabarmati central jail in 2003. His career remained stagnated with no promotions, staying at the SP level due to several pending criminal cases and departmental inquiries against him.

Apart from these, the former IPS officer was charged with several other cases, including custodial death cases and drug-peddling cases, among others. In 2011, the Gujarat Home Ministry charged Bhatt in the 1990 police atrocity case. Currently lodged in Rajkot central jail in Gujarat after he was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2019 for the 1990s, Bhatt was acquitted by court in Gujarat’s Porbandar in a 1997 custodial torture case. The court had cited that the prosecution could not “prove the case beyond reasonable doubt”.

While hearing his bail plea, the Supreme Court on Tuesday, April 29, rejected Bhatt’s plea for bail and suspension of his life sentence in the 1990 custodial death case. Appearing for Bhatt, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, argued that the conviction was not sustainable given the absence of direct medical evidence linking Bhatt to the alleged torture. Sibal had submitted that the victim, Prabhudas Madhavji Vaishnani, had been released on bail and had not alleged custodial violence at the time of his release, while arguing that the cause of death was linked to pre-existing medical conditions, not police action.

However, appearing for the state of Gujarat, senior advocate Maninder Singh argued that the medical reports established a causal link between custodial mistreatment and the victim’s death due to renal failure.

Described as a whistleblower by many, several people consider Bhatt as a victim of state suppression for raising his voice against the Gujarat administration during the 2002 riot. Bhatt and his family have been raising security concerns for his life for years. Bhatt’s family, including his wife Shweta and children, has been seeking public support while fighting all along the years for the incarcerated former police officer.

In December 2024, Bhatt’s daughter, Aakashi took to social media platform X, to remind the people that her father has been in jail for over six years.

“For over six years, he has been unjustly incarcerated, targeted for his unwavering commitment to truth, justice, and the ideals he holds sacred. These have been six long years of resilience, longing, courage, and an unyielding fight for what is right,” Aakashi said.

Noting that it is her father’s 61th birthday, Bhatt’s daughter lamented that their  home and hearts have been filled with a deafening silence, for the past six years.

While expressing relief in the acquittal of Bhatt in 1997 custodial death case in 2024, she noted that her father still remains buried under the weight of lies and subversion.

“Our father, Mr. Sanjiv Bhatt, still remains cruelly imprisoned by a regime bent on breaking him, breaking us, and breaking the very soul of justice in this country,” Aakashi wrote.

This is Aakashi Sanjiv Bhatt,

Today marks our father, Mr. Sanjiv Bhatt’s 61st birthday—his sixth spent behind bars, away from us. For over six years, he has been unjustly incarcerated, targeted for his unwavering commitment to truth, justice, and the ideals he holds sacred.… pic.twitter.com/KdYn0ldisY

— Sanjiv Bhatt (IPS) (@sanjivbhatt) December 21, 2024