Mahatma Gandhi's assassination: SC tells researcher to file plea for furnishing secret documents

The Supreme Court on Monday told a Mumbai-based researcher, seeking re-investigation into Mahatma Gandhi's assassination, to file a separate plea for furnishing "secret documents" obtained from the US purportedly indicating "larger conspiracy" behind it.

"We will first decide whether the case should be reopened after such a long time. We are sure there is some technology to find out more but, should we be doing it now is the question," a bench of Justices S A Bobde and L Nageswara Rao told petitioner Dr Pankaj Phadnis, a researcher and a trustee of Abhinav Bharat.

Phadnis said that he had obtained secret documents which the Indian government had banned. "To open it is an offence, I want to file it before the court," he said.

The court asked him to file an application for furnishing the document and put the matter for consideration on March 6.

Senior advocate Amarendra Sharan, who was appointed as an amicus curiae to assist in the matter, had earlier filed his report stating that there was no need to re-investigate as the conspiracy behind the murder and identity of assailant Nathuram Vinayak Godse who had fired the bullets have already been duly established.

He said claims regarding the existence of British special intelligence unit by the name 'Force 136' and its alleged role in the assassination was not substantiated.

Gandhi was shot dead at point-blank range in New Delhi on January 30, 1948 by Godse, a right-wing advocate of Hindu nationalism. The assassination case had led to the conviction and execution of Godse and Narayan Apte on November 15, 1949.

The petitioner claimed the case was one of the biggest cover-ups in the history.