Riots case: Narendra Modi gets clean chit

New Delhi: BJP’s PM candidate and Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi crossed a major hurdle on Thursday when an Ahmedabad court rejected Zakia Jafri’s plea against the SIT’s closure report giving a clean chit to Mr Modi in the 2002 Gujarat riots.

The court rejected the protest petition, the only lawsuit which accused the BJP’s PM nominee of complicity in the riots, noting that no conspiracy can be proved against “Chief Minister Modi and his Cabinet as they showed alacrity in requisitioning the Army and took necessary steps to control the situation”.

Modi, who is expected to speak on the court’s verdict on Friday, tweeted: “Truth alone triumphs.” He even quoted Mahatma Gandhi’s “truth by nature is self-evident. As soon as you remove the cobwebs of ignorance that surround it, it shines clear”, once the court pronounced its verdict.

Jafri, however, said that she was disappointed but not saddened and will continue her fight and will appeal against the Ahmedabad court’s verdict in a higher court. She had challenged the Supreme Court-appointed SIT’s closure report absolving Modi of complicity in the conspiracy behind the riots.

Not ‘disheartened’: Zakia Jafri

Zakia Jafri, the wife of former Congress MP whose protest petition against SIT's clean chit to Narendra Modi in the 2002 Gujarat communal riots was on Thursday rejected by an Ahmedabad court, said she was not disheartened after the verdict and would appeal against it.

“What the judge said I listened, but I am not going to be disheartened by it and will take my fight to higher courts,” Jafri, who broke down after the judge pronounced his verdict, told reporters.  Zakia's husband Ehsan Jafri was among 68 people massacred during the Gulbarg society riots.

“We are disappointed but not disheartened. We will appeal against this judgement in higher court,” Teesta Setalvad of Citizens for Peace and Justice, who has been supporting Ms Zakia, said.

“We believe that there are sufficient evidence in the probe conducted by the SIT. Apart from that other evidence also suggests that a case can be filed against those who are named in the complaint filed by us,” advocate Mihir Desai, representing Ms Zakia said.

Next: Verdict, a moral victory, says BJP

Verdict, a moral victory: BJP

 
New Delhi: The BJP on Thursday described as “moral victory” the Ahmedabad court's rejection of the plea against the SIT’s clean chit to Narendra Modi in the 2002 Gujarat riots case, claiming that Congress was trying to trap the BJP leader in a criminal case as it could not fight him politically.

Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley said the allegations of Modi's involvement in riots were “politically motivated” as Congress and its “friend NGOs” knew that they could not take on the Gujarat CM politically.

“Congress's attempts to implicate Modi in three cases have failed,” he said, referring to 2002 riots cases besides fake encounter cases of Sohrabuddin and Ishrat Jahan.

In its reaction, the Congress said the court’s decision was a judicial procedure where option of legal recourse was still open and asked BJP not to treat it “as a last word on judicial findings or as a vindication”.
The verdict is expected to give a major boost to the BJP and Mr Modi, who has been trying hard to rid of the post-Godhra riots stain.

The court said there was no evidence to suggest Mr Modi had made a statement at a meeting with top officials following the Godhra incident where he was claimed to have said Hindus should be allowed to vent their anger, a charge levelled by suspended IPS officer Sanjeev Bhatt.