The Supreme Court on Tuesday objected to an allegation made by Zakia Jafri, the widow of a Congress leader killed in the 2002 Gujarat riots, that the apex court-appointed SIT “collaborated” with the conspirators.
“You are attacking the manner of investigation done by the SIT? It is the same SIT which filed chargesheets in other cases and got the guilty convicted... There was no grievances raised against the SIT in those proceedings,” a Bench led by Justice A.M. Khanwilkar asked senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Ms. Jafri.
The court was reacting to Mr. Sibal’s submissions that there was glaring evidence of collaboration”.
The court said “collaboration” was a very strong term to be used against a SIT formed by the Supreme Court. The court asked whether Mr. Sibal was clear before attributing motives on the SIT in the case
Mr. Sibal has been going through various records and evidence to show that the SIT’s examination of Ms. Jafri’s complaint of a “larger conspiracy” behind the riots was riddled with omissions.
The conclusions arrived at by the SIT contradicted the facts before it, Mr. Sibal has said, even suggesting that the SIT should be probed. Mr. Sibal alleged those involved in the SIT were “rehabilitated” later.
Ms. Jafri is challenging the closure report filed by the SIT in February 2012.
She had alleged that the riots were the machination of the people in power at that time in the State. The conspiracy had manifested in a “compliant” State administration and a complacent police force amidst the carnage.
The SIT had given a clean chit to then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and 63 others, including senior government officials, saying there was “no prosecutable evidence” against them. A ‘protest petition’ filed by Ms. Jafri against the clean chit was dismissed by the Magistrate. The Gujarat High Court too, in October 2017, refused to entertain Ms. Jafri.
