Justice for Sanjiv Bhatt : Ex-IPS officer's wife wages lone battle against powers that be

Ahmedabad /Hyderabad: Being the wife of an honest and unaffected civil servant should, of course, be a matter pride and great social respect for any woman in the country, but for single-minded Swetha Bhatt, it has been a nightmare and a cause of great concern for over a couple of decades since Gujarat 2002 riots.

Haunted by the State for being straightforward, sacked IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt, who has been languishing in jail since September 5, 2018 for no fault of his, has been convicted by a Gujarat court to life imprisonment on June 20 this year in a custodial death case dating back to 1990 when he was Additional Superintendent of Police.

Swetha, his wife, ironically left alone by her husband's police fraternity in her fight for justice, has made up her mind to fight till she gets justice.

"Sanjiv was prime witness to the inaction and complacency of State administration during the 2002 Gujarat carnage.

He had the guts to depose before several commissions and even the apex court about the inaction and silent consent of the then Gujarat government while people were exterminated en masse post Godhra riot with incriminating material evidence.

He also gave testimony for the involvement of political leaders in many brutal murders. And for all his sincerity and love for the country, he was subjected to political vendetta," Swetha told The Hans India, in an exclusive interview from Ahmedabad.

"Sanjiv is paying the price for not buckling under political pressure, for standing up against the fascist political regime, for doing his duty with utmost honour and striving hard to bring the perpetrators of hatred and communal violence to the court of justice," says Swetha.

Sanjiv, who was jailed in a 23-year-old case filed by a businessman when he was the Superintendent of Police in Gujarat, has been sentenced for life imprisonment by a sessions court in a case of custodial death, apparently framed by the State to settle scores with the officer.

"It is ridiculous that in a democracy like India, an upright officer has been harassed by the State for standing against communal forces. He fought for the victims of fascist regime.

Now, it is our turn to fight for justice," says Swetha. Though no political party or human rights organisation has come forward openly to support her in her lone fight for justice, she has been getting a lot of individual support from people from all walks of lives.

"It looks like there is a general fear among people to come out and openly support me as the rival is ready to go up to any extent to squash any dissent voice. However, there are quite a few who reached out and extended their support to us," she says.

"Our sole aim now is to get Sanjiv back home. We have been getting a lot of support from like-minded people. If we all stand united in the fight for justice, Sanjiv will sure get justice. I'm grateful to all those who are with me in fight," says Swetha.

Swetha, who contested against Narendra Modi in 2012 Assembly elections from Maninagar, says her fight is not against any individual or a particular party.

"In a democracy, citizens have all the right to exercise their freedom of speech and expression. The is fight is against a specific ideology – ideology of hatred and religious fanaticism.

Just because Sanjiv filed an affidavit in 2011 implicating Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and many other high government functionaries in their role in the 2002 Gujarat massacre, he was constantly harassed and tormented by the government.

He was unlawfully detained time and again. And now, this," (referring to life imprisonment) she says.