The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a petition that challenged the clean chit given to Bharatiya Janata Party President Amit Shah in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh "fake encounter" case. The top court dismissed activist and former bureaucrat Harish Mander's appeal seeking a reinvestigation into Shah's role in the case. It also rejected his argument that he could challenge Shah's exoneration because he was a "person aggrieved", The Indian Express reported.

Mander had sought the quashing of a Mumbai Sessions Court order from December 30, 2014, which exonerated Shah saying he was investigated in the case for "political reasons". The BJP president was accused of allegedly ordering a "fake encounter" in 2005, in which Gujarat police gunned down Sheikh, a petty criminal in the state. The police reported to Shah then as he was the Gujarat home affairs minister. He was investigated for both destruction of evidence and murder.

Lawyer Harish Salve, who was representing the 51-year-old politician, argued that Mander was "not even remotely connected with the case". He also questioned how Shah could be "continuously prosecuted" despite being "discharged" in the case, NDTV reported. Mander was represented by lawyers Kipal Sibal, Rajeev Dhavan and Anand Grover.