After a seven-year vigil, the Supreme Court on Tuesday gave courts in Gujarat the go-ahead to pronounce judgements in the 2002 Godhra train carnage trial and the communal violence cases that followed. The court?s order did not, however, include trial in the Gulberg Society massacre in which nearly 60 people, including former Congress MP Ehsan Jaffri, were killed.
The Supreme Court-appointed special investigation team (SIT) is yet to complete its investigation into a complaint filed by Jafri?s widow, Zakia, naming 65 suspects, including Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi, for allegedly colluding with the rioters.
In fact, SIT chief RK Raghavan on Tuesday told the Supreme Court that he needs more time to examine ?three persons??identified by sources as former Gujarat minister of state for home Gordhan Zadafia, retired Additional DGP MK Tandon and IGP P B Gondia?in the case. The court gave him time till December 2 to file a final investigation report.
Tuesday?s order will see the judgement being pronounced soon in the Sabarmati Express train carnage case. The train burning incident had killed 58 persons and triggered communal violence across the state. The trial was concluded at the Sabarmati jail premises against 94 accused last month, but the judgment was held back due to the Supreme Court stay.
The lifting of the stay would also see judgements in the Ode, Sardarpura, Naroda Gam, Naroda Patiya, Dipda Darwaza cases and the case in Prantij which involved the killing of three British nationals and their driver.
A Special Bench of Justices DK Jain, P Sathasivam and Aftab Alam had on May 6 stayed pronouncement of judgements in the Godhra cases, even though it directed that the trials be continued. The stay was ordered following allegations raised by civil rights activists about lapses in probe by the SIT.
Amicus curiae Harish Salve on Tuesday assured the court that it would be ?better that all the cases (post Godhra riots cases) be concluded?. He pointed out that A K Malhotra, a former DIG of CBI, was already looking into the activists? allegations and no purpose would be served by holding back the judgements.
?Except in the Gulberg case, in all the other matters the trials can be closed,? Salve submitted.
To a demand by advocate Kamini Jaiswal, appearing for one of the activists, that the SIT be reconstituted, Justice Jain replied: ?Reconstitution of the SIT will mean the entire trial process, whatever we have done, will come to nothing. Many people are in jail for nearly 10 years waiting for the judgment.?
Meanwhile, the Bench issued notice to SIT on a separate petition filed by Zakia requesting the transfer of the Gulberg Society case from the court of the current trial judge on the ground that she was ?humiliated?.