Aug
17
Gujarat Updates: Supreme Court Orders Review of 2000 Cases
August 17, 2004 | Comments Off on Gujarat Updates: Supreme Court Orders Review of 2000 Cases
The Supreme Court has ordered senior police officers to review around 2000 cases closed after the 2002 Gujarat pogroms:
The court wants the police to decide whether any of the cases should be reinvestigated…
In its order, the Supreme Court called for the establishment of a cell headed by a senior police official to look into the circumstances in which the cases were closed. In many cases the investigating officers said they could not trace the culprits. There have been accusations that witnesses were threatened and forced to withdraw statements made to the police.
In the Best Bakery case, where 12 Muslims were burned alive, the Supreme Court named two new public prosecutors, trying to end a controversy that has prevented the trial from proceeding.
The Ex-Director General of Police of Gujarat testified today before the Nanavati and Shah Commission examining the 2002 Gujarat pogroms. He claimed that he wasn’t consulted on the filing of POTA charges against the accused in the Godhra carnage case. He also tried to justify the failures of the Gujarat police:
The former DGP during his cross-examination stated that on February 28, 2002, he had ordered his junior officers across the state to mobilise forces, monitor communally sensitive areas and even ensure that all minor cases are supervised as a backlash of the train carnage was expected.
However, the officer failed to answer to queries as to why his orders were not taken seriously and why he was not kept updated about the situation….
Justifying the role of the Gujarat police during the carnage, Chakravarthy said the situation was chaotic and it was difficult to control the mob. He also blamed the electronic media and newspapers for inciting the masses.
In the Bilkis Bano case, also transferred outside of Gujarat by the Supreme Court, a special CBI court issued notices to jail officials against whom some of the accused had leveled intimidation charges.
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