The three have been identified as Bipin Patel, BJP councillor of Asarva, Chunilal Prajapati, a former BJP councillor, and V S Gohil, a former police inspector, at Naroda police station.

While Patel and Prajapati are accused of inciting the mob and taking part in the riots at the Gulbarg Society, Gohil is accused of dereliction of duty in the Naroda Gam riot.

Patel and Prajapati surrendered before the SIT at 2 pm on Wednesday. The two had earlier sought anticipatory bail from the Gujarat High Court. But they later withdrew their applications on February 20 after realising that the court might reject the same.

The SIT, on Tuesday, had moved an application before the court of Metropolitan Magistrate G M Patel, seeking Gohil’s arrest warrant under the provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code. The court had kept the hearing on the application for Thursday.

However, on Wednesday, Gohil surfaced before the court around 5 pm and expressed his desire to surrender before the court. But the court refused his plea and asked him to surrender before the SIT. Following this, the public prosecutor informed the SIT officials, who rushed to the court and took him into custody.

“He had been evading arrest for long, following which we had sought for an arrest warrant from the court. It seems he surfaced before the court following our application,” said an SIT official.

Gohil, who is at present posted as Circle Police Inspector of Mangrol, was the second police inspector of Naroda police station when the Naroda Gam massacre had occurred. Eleven people had been killed in the massacre. Gohil was the investigating officer of the case bearing the FIR No 98/2002.