The Supreme Court on Monday scheduled for the third week of January its hearing of a plea by Zakia Jafri, who has challenged the clean chit given by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in connection with the 2002 Godhra riots.
HC rejected plea
Ms Jafri’s husband Ehsan Jafri, an MP, was killed in the riots. The Gujarat High Court had rejected her plea to consider setting up a SIT to examine the “larger conspiracy” during the period between February 27, 2002 and May 2002.
Activist and social rights crusader Teesta Setalvad has also sought permission to become a co-petitioner in the case.
During the previous hearing, senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, for the SIT, objected to the plea made by Ms. Jafri and Ms. Setalvad becoming a party in the matter.
Senior advocate C.U. Singh, for Ms. Jafri, countered that she was about 80 years of age and Ms. Setalvad would be able to assist her in the case.
Mr. Singh submitted that SIT had given a clean chit in its closure report before a trial judge.
The Magistrate had dismissed Ms. Jafri’s protests to the clean chit without going into the merits.
On February 8, 2012, the SIT had filed a closure report, giving clean chit to Mr. Modi and 63 others, including senior government officials, saying there was “no prosecutable evidence” against them.