4 min readVadodaraJul 27, 2026 08:39 PM IST
The Gujarat High Court on Monday granted the state government additional time till Friday to decide on Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) in the 2019 ‘custodial death’ case of Telangana migrant worker Shaikh Babu Nisar in Vadodara’s Fatehgunj police station, after the government cited heavy rains and widespread waterlogging across the state as the reason for the delay in taking a call in the matter.
Justice M K Thakker noted that despite the court’s earlier direction, no decision had been taken on whether advocate S I Ghariya should continue as Special Public Prosecutor in the long-pending trial.
Appearing for the State, the Additional Public Prosecutor informed the court that the opinion of the District Government Pleader had now been received by the Home Department. However, owing to the prevailing rain and flood-like situation in several parts of the State, the government had been unable to take a final decision. The State assured the court that a decision is expected shortly.
Taking note of the explanation, the court granted time till Friday but made it clear that the matter could not be kept pending indefinitely.
The court recorded that no decision had been taken pursuant to its earlier order. At the request of the Additional Public Prosecutor, it deferred the matter till Friday, while cautioning that if the government still failed to take a decision, the Secretary of the Home Department would be required to file an affidavit explaining the delay.
The issue stems from the State government’s June 2 decision to discontinue Ghariya as Special Public Prosecutor, a move challenged by the victim’s son, Salim Nisar, before the High Court.
During the previous hearing, the High Court had expressed serious reservations over the repeated changes of prosecutors in the case, observing that such changes were hampering rather than expediting the trial.
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The court had noted that Ghariya, who has been conducting trial since 2021 and was reappointed pursuant to a High Court order in 2024, had overseen substantial progress in the case. According to the petitioner, the trial record has grown to nearly 3,500 pages, over 60 witnesses have already been examined, and only around 25 material witnesses remain.
The State had earlier informed the court that advocate Atul Vyas, who was appointed in Ghariya’s place, had declined the assignment due to personal reasons.
Questioning the rationale behind replacing a prosecutor at such an advanced stage of the trial, the court had observed that any new prosecutor would require considerable time to familiarise himself with the voluminous record, thereby delaying proceedings further.
The victim’s son, Salim Nisar, has argued that Ghariya’s removal is arbitrary and prejudicial to the prosecution, particularly in light of the Supreme Court’s earlier directions to ensure expeditious examination of key witnesses. The petition also relies on previous orders of both the Supreme Court and the Gujarat High Court fixing timelines for completion of the trial.
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2019 case
The case concerns the alleged custodial death of 65-year-old Telangana daily wage worker Shaikh Babu Nisar, who, according to the complainant, “disappeared” after being taken into custody by Vadodara’s Fatehgunj police in December 2019. Following a habeas corpus petition by his son, the Gujarat High Court directed registration of an FIR, leading to a CID probe.
The CID said that Nisar was tortured in police custody and that his body was disposed of in a canal, though it has never been recovered. In 2020, the CID chargesheeted eight police personnel for offences including murder and destruction of evidence. The trial has also witnessed disputes over the appointment of the Special Public Prosecutor, with the victim’s family consistently seeking the continuation of Ghariya, who was reappointed by the High Court in 2024.
