Court orders production of original digital evidence in Sabarmati Jail tunnel case

The Sessions Court has issued a significant order in the 2013 Sabarmati Central Jail tunnel scandal case in Ahmedabad. Serious questions have been raised regarding the digital evidence collected during the investigation and the charge sheet prepared by the investigating officer. Although the CD containing photography conducted in the jail was submitted to the court, it cannot currently be opened; taking this into account, the court has now ordered the production of the original digital evidence.

According to a report by Sandesh, by allowing the application of the Special Public Prosecutor, the court has ordered the submission of the photography CD, a pen drive, and the necessary certificate under Section 65(B)(4) of the Indian Evidence Act. Additionally, the court has allowed another application. A request was made by the prosecution to summon a person before the court as a witness, whose name the investigating officer had not mentioned as a witness in the charge sheet, which the court has accepted.

The Sabarmati Jail tunnel scandal came to light on 10 February 2013. The accused of the serial bomb blasts that occurred in Ahmedabad in 2008 were kept in jail's Barrack Number 4. Under the guise of gardening activities, these prisoners had secretly dug a tunnel by removing soil. Initially, the jail administration stated that the length of the tunnel was 18 to 26 feet, but investigations by the Crime Branch and other agencies revealed that the length of this tunnel was approximately 213 to 214 feet. This tunnel had reached the outer wall of the jail. A case was registered against a total of 24 prisoners in this matter.

In this 2013 case, the prisoners had dug a long tunnel to escape from the jail, which was revealed during the investigation.