The SIT has submitted its report to the apex court on allegations levelled by Zakia Jafri, wife of a former Congress MP Ahsan Jafri, who was killed in the riots in Gulbarg Society.
Reports that the Supreme Court-appointed special investigation team (SIT) did not find any ‘substantial incriminating evidence’ against Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi in the 2002 riots case has created an uproar amongst activists, and silent celebrations in the BJP.
The SIT has submitted its report to the apex court on allegations levelled by Zakia Jafri, wife of a former Congress MP Ahsan Jafri, who was killed in the riots in Gulbarg Society.
Even as activists decried the SIT’s reported findings, BJP’s senior leaders said their stand is vindicated. Media reports on Friday claimed that a report submitted to the SC recently by SIT was unable to pin Modi’s role in abetting the 2002 riots.
The information, based on leaked reports, was not confirmed by SIT officials.
Retired IPS officer, RB Sreekumar, who had submitted six affidavits to SIT in connection with the riots case, told DNA that “SIT officials had acted as a team of lawyers to save chief minister Modi from being accused in the riots.” He further said that the SIT officials did not take any note of his affidavits as well as a major part of Zakia Jafri’s complaint.
“As many as 33 pages of Jafri’s complaint have been included from my affidavits submitted to SIT, yet nothing has been done in this connection,” he said.
Director of Ahmedabad NGO, Prashant, Fr Cedric Prakash, which has been supporting the victims’ claim that Modi’s administration instigated the riots, said: “The SIT opinion to say the least, is disappointing. It clearly shows that those who control the reins of power in our country can literally get away with murder. Justice for the victims has taken a backseat. Our hope now is that truth will one day prevail.”
Leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha and BJP MP from Gujarat Arun Jaitley said: “This issue is in court. We are not aware of what the SIT has said, so we will not be able to make a detailed comment. But if such an outcome is there then it will be a truth which will vindicate our stand on the matter.”
BJP leader Shahnawaz Hussain said, “The BJP has taken the stand to cooperate with law. People may have been conspiring against the BJP, but we believe in law.”
CPI (M) leader Brinda Karat said the SIT report was submitted to the apex court in a sealed cover and wanted to know how it was leaked to a newspaper.
Mukul Rohtagi, counsel for the Gujarat government, said the state government had been maintaining that Modi had no role to play in the riots. “The riots were unfortunate but to allege that the CM was engineering them or was negligent... is a falsehood,” he said.
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