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An eyewitness in the 2002 Gulberg massacre case has told the fast-track court that while his house was under attack by rioters, Congress leader Ehsan Jafri had made a phone call to Chief Minister Narendra Modi for help only to be abused by the latter.
The witness, identified as Imtiaz Saeed Khan Pathan (32), is one of the survivors of the Gulberg Society massacre. A number of Muslims of the locality had taken shelter at Jafri’s residence during the riots.
The trial of the case has begun in the designated fast-track court of Judge B U Joshi in Ahmedabad. Pathan, the first witness of the case, who lived in Gulberg Society during the riots, appeared before the court to give evidence on Monday.
In his examination-in-chief by Special Public Prosecutor R K Shah, Pathan said that on February 28, 2002, the society was under attack by a mob and like several others, he too had taken shelter at Jafri’s house.
At this point, according to Pathan’s deposition, he went to Jafri to ask for help as the police were not coming to their rescue.
At that time, according to Pathan, Jafri said he would call Modi for help.
When Pathan asked the Congress leader what the CM said, Jafri said that instead of providing help, Modi abused him.
Besides this, Pathan identified 21 accused in the case in his 27-page deposition, and pointed out the crime they committed during the riots, like rape, murder, attempted murder and arson.
Seven members of Pathan’s family were killed in the massacre, which also left 69 people dead, including Jafri. Defence lawyer Mitesh Amin cross-examined Pathan for two days till Wednesday.
Non-bailable warrants against two Naroda Patiya riot accused
A designated court on Wednesday issued non-bailable warrants against two accused in the Naroda Patiya case for contempt of court. Designated Judge Jyotsna Yagnik issued the warrants against Naresh Chhara and Vijay Chakubhai for not following court orders. Despite repeated reminders to remain present in the court during the hearing, the accused remained absent, following which the court issued warrants against them.
The riots in Naroda Patiya on February 28, 2002 had claimed 98 lives. A total of 46 people were arrested in the case before the Supreme Court asked the state to constitute a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to look into some of the riot cases. The SIT made further 21 arrests in the case, while four people are still absconding.
The accused in the case include former BJP minister Dr Maya Kodnani.
The Gujarat High Court recently termed the Naroda Patiya massacre as a carnage “almost unparalleled in modern history” and that such crimes undermine the very foundation of law.
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Great, let the skeletons tumble out of the cupboard of the powers-that-be. We want to know the truth behind the unpardonable events of 2002.
I wonder if this Pathan mia really heard the alleged conversation between Jaffri mia and Modi! A sane person would question this person's credibility on the ground of hearsay. Now he and Jaffri's widow are singing the same tune, which all of a sudden both remember. Gujarat will only believe a real hard core fact - a phone recorded of the alleged conversation, or perhaps a video clip of the alleged abuse. Till something like this is unearthed, Gujarat will continue to doubt these so called permanently victimized muslims. Let the dogs bark as much as they desire. Gujaratis will continue to support Shri Modi and this team's great work.
It is interesting to watch that slowly and gradually the facts of Gujarat riots of 2002 are coming out which were supported by the Gujarat police and the government. More than 2000 innocent people were killed during these riots. The world had taken a note of this and it was a big shame for Indian people. Vajpayee and Advani were in the central government, but they didn't take any actions to prevent riots and protect the human rights of innocent people of Gujarat. Let us hope, SIT and our courts are going to reveal the facts of planned riots of 2002 and the culprits would be punished for their acts and the victims will get justice. These riots is a big shame and the most severe violation of human rights in the world history after the World War II in 1945.