Gujarat riots: Who killed Ghulam Rasool?

The family of Saiyed Ghulam Rasool, who was killed in another area of Ode one day after a mob burnt to death 23 Muslims in the same village, could draw no consolation from Monday's verdict.

The sessions court acquitted all the 15 people who were accused of killing Rasool because the slain man's son, Saiyed Rafique Mohammad, was unable to identify 13 of the accused. This case was also investigated by the Supreme Court-appointed special investigation team (SIT).

On Monday, Saiyed Rafique Mohammad was at his home in Surivali Bhagol after the Sessions court gave its verdict acquitting all the people accused of killing his father. Disappointment was writ large on his face. His father was burnt alive in front of his home by the mob and he and his 15-year-old daughter, Farida, were the only witnesses. Now Rafique and Farida are facing criticism for turning 'hostile' in their father's murder case.

Rafique alleged that neither the local police nor the SIT had taken his father's murder seriously.

"First the local police and then the SIT refused to consider my father's murder as separate from the killing of 23 people that had taken place in Peeravali Bhagol area of the village a day earlier. The two incidents occurred at different places and on different days. Hence, there should have been two separate FIRs - one for the incident in which 23 people were killed and the other for my father's murder. But the police as well as the SIT considered my father's murder as part of the same case," said Rafique.

He further said that he had written about this to the human rights commission, the SP as well as to the SIT. "I had demanded registration of a separate FIR but all my efforts were in vain. Till today, a separate FIR in my father's case has not been registered," he said. Rafique said the SIT had called him and his daughter for recording of their statements. "I had given, in writing, the names of 13 people whom we had seen in the mob which killed my father. The SIT had also recorded our statements but it did not consider them. The SIT did not give us a copy of our statements. We came to know about it when something else was placed as our statements by the SIT in court," said Rafique.

He alleged that the probe team had mentioned the name of 15 people as being involved in the incident in which his father was killed. The SIT list of 15 accused contained the names of only two people from Rafique's list of 13 accused given to the probe team. Incidentally, all the 15 accused were also named as accused in the case arising out of the incident in which 23 people were killed, Rafique said. "But those two people were acquitted by the court today. The real killers of my father are still moving freely in the village. The local police had taken our statement on the 7th day after the incident and that too after calling us to Bhalej. They did not come to Ode for the statement," said Rafique.

Recalling his father's murder, Rafique said they were all leaving the village but there was not enough space in their vehicle. Hence, his father stayed back.  "I too stayed back and my daughter stayed back to cook for us. On March 2, a young boy was killed in police firing. Next day, before his body was taken to the crematorium, his funeral procession was taken out in the village. When passing by my home, the mob saw my father. They dragged him out of our home and burnt him alive. We were so scared and helpless that we couldn't do anything but to watch him die," Rafique said.