The Supreme Court on Monday asked the Bombay High Court to decide expeditiously a plea by Lieutenant Colonel Prasad Purohit, an accused in the 2008 Malegaon blast case, challenging the Centre's sanction to prosecute him.
A Bench led by Justice Hemant Gupta requested the High Court to decide Mr. Purohit's plea against the government's sanction under Section 197(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Mr. Purohit is a serving officer in the Indian Army.
Section 197(2) mandates that "no court shall take cognisance of any offence alleged to have been committed by any member of the Armed Forces of the Union while acting or purporting to act in the discharge of his official duty, except with the previous sanction of the Central Government".
