No riot witness could recall Maya Kodnani’s vehicle number: HC

AHMEDABAD: The Gujarat high court, which acquitted former BJP minister Maya Kodnani on Friday by giving her the benefit of doubt in the 2002 Naroda Patia massacre case, has questioned why none of the witnesses recalled the licence-plate number of her vehicle.
A division bench of Justice H N Devani and Justice A S Supehia in their 3,422-page order said that six witnesses claimed that Kodnani had alighted from her white Maruti Franti (sic) car but “none of the witnesses has given the number of the vehicle”. The massacre occurred on February 28, 2002 and the trial commenced in 2009 in the special investigation team (SIT) court.

‘Discrepancies brushed aside’

The high court also observed that the trial court in convicting Maya Kodnani had simply accepted the testimonies of all the witnesses brushing aside the discrepancies in their evidence. The court said: “…if around the same time Mayaben came in a car and left, how could she be present in the mob.”

Besides, the court pointed out that while some witnesses said Kodnani arrived alone in her car, others said she was accompanied by her PA. Other witnesses said she was accompanied by Bipin Panchal, Murli Sindhi and Guddu Chhara.

“No investigation has been carried out by the SIT to ascertain whether Kodnani owned or was using any such vehicle at the relevant time, nor has it attempted to trace the vehicle,” the court observed in its verdict. “This is a serious lacuna in the investigation by the SIT because all evidence against Kodnani has come only at the stage when the SIT came into the picture, therefore it was the duty of the SIT to gather evidence in support of the versions given by the witnesses.”

The high court refused to believe any of the 11witnesses, who were residents of Naroda Patia, claiming their discrepant testimonies cannot be reconciled for Kodnani.