The Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) was still looking for Minister of State for Women and Child Welfare Dr Maya Kodnani and VHP leader Jaydeep Patel on Tuesday. A day earlier, the SIT had declared the two as absconders in connection with the Naroda Patiya and Naroda Gam riot cases.

But conflicting statements came from party leaders on Tuesday.

Gujarat BJP president Purushottam Rupala said the court had ordered not to arrest her till the next hearing on February 5. But he did not specify which court had issued such an order. On being further asked, he said Kodnani’s advocate should be contacted for further

details.

Elsewhere, advocate Mitesh Amin who had filed the anticipatory bail application on behalf of Kodnani and Patel before the court of Ahmedabad City Sessions Judge A K Aswani, denied that Kodnani had received anticipatory bail. Amin said further hearing in the case is scheduled on February 5 and that the court has not put stay on the arrest of the two leaders.

When contacted over the issue, Chief Public Prosecutor of Ahmedabad City Sessions Court Sudhir Brahmbhatt said that public prosecutor V P Atre had appeared before the court during the anticipatory bail application matter of the two leaders.

Atre said there is no stay on the arrest of the two leaders and that they will be arrested whenever the police finds them.

Gujarat government spokesperson and state minister Jay Narayan Vyas said he had no idea where his colleague was. Neither was he aware if Kodnani had obtained an anticipatory bail from an Ahmedabad court, he said.