Thu Dec 11 06:27:24 UTC 2025: News Article Summary:

The Supreme Court of India has rejected a plea by former IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt to suspend his 20-year jail sentence in a 1996 drug seizure case. Bhatt was convicted of falsely implicating a Rajasthan-based lawyer by planting drugs in his hotel room to coerce him into transferring a property. Bhatt, who was dismissed from service in 2015, had previously sought transfer of the trial, alleging bias, but the Supreme Court dismissed his plea and imposed a fine.

News Article:

Supreme Court Upholds Sanjiv Bhatt’s 20-Year Sentence in Drug Planting Case

New Delhi, December 11, 2025 – The Supreme Court today rejected a plea filed by former IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt, upholding his 20-year prison sentence in a 1996 drug seizure case. The ruling effectively denies Bhatt’s request for suspension of the sentence.

A bench of Justices J.K. Maheshwari and Vijay Bishnoi stated that it was “not inclined to entertain the matter,” effectively ending Bhatt’s appeal at the apex court level.

Bhatt was convicted by a sessions court in Palanpur, Gujarat, for falsely implicating Sumersingh Rajpurohit, a Rajasthan-based lawyer. Evidence presented showed Bhatt, then Superintendent of Police in Banaskantha district, fabricated the seizure of drugs from Rajpurohit’s hotel room in an attempt to force the lawyer to transfer a disputed property in Rajasthan.

The case gained traction after a separate inquiry was initiated by former police inspector I.B. Vyas, leading to Bhatt’s arrest in 2018 under the NDPS Act.

This marks the latest setback for Bhatt, who was dismissed from service in 2015. Last year, the Supreme Court had already dismissed his plea to transfer the trial, alleging bias against the lower court judge and imposing a fine of ₹3 lakh.

Read More