MUMBAI: In a surprise move, Rubabuddin Shaikh, younger brother of Sohrabuddin who was killed in an alleged fake encounter in Gujarat in 2005, sought to withdraw his challenge to the discharge of BJP president Amit Shah in the fake encounter killing case.

However, the court did not accept his request to drop the case immediately and posted it for hearing after two weeks.

Amit Shah was an accused in the fake encounter case along with many others including top police officers from Gujarat.

A special CBI judge at the sessions court premises in Mumbai had last year discharged Amit Shah from the case for want of any prima facie evidence. This meant that the charges against Shah were dropped and he was no longer an accused who could face trial in the case.

Rubabuddin moved the high court belatedly this year to challenge the discharge. His lawyer was activist advocate Vijay Hirrmath.

But in a two-page plea which he filed himself, Rubabuddin informed Justice Anuja Prabhudesai of Bombay high court on Tuesday that he was voluntarily withdrawing his challenge against Shah's discharge.

His plea was on the grounds of a "communication gap" between him and his lawyer on the original filing of the challenge.

Hirrmath, who was present in court too, told the court that the revision application against the trial court order was filed "on instructions" of his client--Rubabuddin.

The judge wanted to keep the matter on Wednesday for a hearing but Rubabuddin said he did not want his children to miss school as that is what would happen if he had to present in court again on Wednesday. The judge then posted the matter for hearing after two weeks.

The court will decide on the withdrawal plea after hearing the application.

Rubabuddin had said that he was making the application without any pressure from anyone but he gave little reasons for the withdrawal.

The discharge last December had come as a major victory for BJP president Amit Shah. The special CBI court in Mumbai had held that there was no legal evidence against him in the Sohrabuddin Shaikh fake encounter case of 2005 and discharged him as accused after observing that the charges against him appeared to be politically framed.

“There is substance in the contention of Shah’s counsel SV Raju that the charges against him were politically framed," special trial judge M B Gosavi had said.

The discharge order had upset well wishers of Sohrabuddin Shaikh, an alleged gangster who had gained supremacy in marble mining in several areas of Rajasthan. "There is no prosecutable material against Shah which requires a trial," the judge had held.

The case against Shah was that a conspiracy was hatched by Rajasthan home minister Gulabchand Kataria with the use of his political connections in Gujarat and top police officials from Gujarat and Rajasthan to do away with Sorabuddin. But the court in its discharge order held that there was "nothing to show a meeting of minds" that is required to prove a conspiracy.