New Delhi: A special Ahmedabad court on Thursday acquitted all accused, including former minister Maya Kodnani and Bajrang Dal leader Babu Bajrangi of murder, criminal conspiracy and rioting in the Naroda Gam riots that took place 21 years ago in the aftermath of the 2002 Gujarat riots.
Eleven members of the Muslim community were killed in the communal violence in the Naroda Gam area of Ahmedabad on 28 February, 2002, during a bandh called to protest the Godhra train burning a day before. Fifty-nine passengers, mostly “karsevaks” returning from Ayodhya, were killed in the Sabarmati Express arson.
The accused were tried for murder, attempted murder, unlawful assembly, rioting, rioting armed with deadly weapons, criminal conspiracy, and provoking riots, among others.
There were a total of 86 accused in the case, but 18 died during trial. The court of S.K. Baxi — special judge for Special Investigation Agency (SIT) cases — pronounced the verdict against 68 accused on Thursday.
The prosecution and defence examined 187 and 57 witnesses respectively in the trial that started in 2010 and went on for nearly 13 years with six judges successively presiding over the case.
In September 2017, senior BJP leader Amit Shah had appeared as a defence witness for Kodnani. Kodnani, 67, requested the court to summon Shah to prove her alibi that she was present in the Gujarat Assembly and later at the Sola Civil Hospital and not at Naroda Gam where the massacre took place.
Among evidence produced by the prosecution was the video of a sting operation carried out by journalist Ashish Khetan as well as call details of Kodnani, Bajrangi and others during that time.
Kodnani, who was a minister in the Narendra Modi-led Gujarat government, was convicted and sentenced to 28 years in jail in the Naroda Patiya riot case where 97 people were killed. She was later discharged by the Gujarat High Court.
In the present case, she was charged with criminal conspiracy besides rioting, murder and attempted murder.
When the trial started, S.H. Vora was the presiding judge, but was later elevated to the Gujarat High Court. His successors Jyotsna Yagnik, K.K. Bhatt and P.B. Desai retired during the trial. Special judge M.K. Dave, who came next, was transferred.
Special prosecutor Suresh Shah told PTI: “The trial (deposition of witnesses) concluded around four years ago. Arguments of the prosecution concluded and the defence was making its arguments when then special judge P.B. Desai retired. So arguments started afresh before judge Dave and later judge Baxi, which delayed proceedings.”
The massacre at Naroda Gam was one of the nine major 2002 communal riot cases investigated by the SIT and heard by special courts.
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