Hashimpura massacre: 16 Provincial Armed Constabulary officers acquitted

Political parties seem to have lost interest in the 28-year-old Hashimpura massacre story. But, after the Delhi court's acquittal on Saturday of 16 Uttar Pradesh Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) officers in the case, in which 42 Muslims were killed in Meerut, it may now return to haunt politics in Uttar Pradesh.

How did incident affect UP politics?
After the 1987 Hashimpura killings, the then ruling Congress never returned to power in the state. It was over this massacre incident that PDP's Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, who now is governing Jammu and Kashmir in alliance with the BJP, had resigned from the Rajiv Gandhi Cabinet in 1987.
The case may now pose a test for the ruling Samajwadi Party in Uttar Pradesh. The Akhilesh Yadav government had promised that they would review all terrorism related cases filed against the Muslim youth in Hashimpura in its political manifesto.

How have victims' kin reacted?
Relatives of victims say they have lost count of the number of trips they have made to Delhi's Tis Hazari court seeking justice. They have not forgiven the Congress. In the Lok Sabha election last year, both the SP and the BSP fielded Muslim candidates. Shahid Manzoor is a minister in the Akhilesh government and Shahid Akhlaq is of the BSP. The Congress, which has never fielded a Muslim candidate in the seat after Mohsina Kidwai, who was defeated in the 1989 election and again in 1994, fielded actress Nagma from that constituency.
Some of the relatives of the victims fear the case will soon be forgotten, The number of those fighting the case, in which Muslim youth were allegedly taken in a PAC truck during riots and later killed, has trickled down. Their bodies were reportedly thrown in the Upper Ganga Canal near Delhi and some in the Hindon river. Three of the 19 accused PAC personnel have died during the course of the trial.

How did court back verdict?
But, with the Muslim vote, a little over 30 per cent in the constituency, getting divided between the BSP and SP, the BJP benefited with its candidate Rajendra Aggarwal, the sitting MP.
The Delhi court acquitted the accused for lack of evidence and said they deserved benefit of doubt. It also said the prosecution failed to establish its case and there were doubts regarding identification of the accused. Additional sessions judge Sanjay Jindal had sought clarifications from the counsel for the prosecution, accused and victims and posted the case for March 21 for a judgement.

Does case need political push?
In 2012, Subramanian Swamy, who was then Janata Party President, moved the Delhi court seeking directions for further probe into the massacre. In his application, he sought probe into the alleged role of P Chidambaram, who was then minister of state for home at the Centre, on the ground that a crucial part of the investigation has been deliberately not investigated due to political consideration. However, the court dismissed the plea.
The chargesheet in the case was filed before the chief judicial magistrate in 1996. The case was transferred to Delhi in September 2002 on the order of Supreme Court after families of the victims filed petitions.