SIT manipulated NHRC,CEC reports on 2002 riots: Zakia Jafri's lawyer

AHMEDABAD: The lawyer of Zakia Jafri today alleged before the magistrate's court here that Special Investigation Team probing the 2002 Gujarat riots cases "ignored and manipulated" conclusions of National Human Rights Commission and Chief Election Commissioner.

" SIT has wilfully ignored and manipulated conclusions of National Human Rights Commission and Chief Election Commissioner on the attitude of the state machinery and ground realities during and after 2002 riots, to shield the real culprits," said Advocate Aparna Bhatt.

She was arguing before Metropolitan Magistrate B J Ganatra, on behalf of Zakia Jafri. Jafri, on whose complaint alleging complicity of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and others in facilitating the riots the Supreme Court set up the SIT, has now challenged the SIT's report giving clean chit to Modi and 57 others before the magistrate.

Bhatt said that NHRC had severely reprimanded the state government for failing to protect the religious places of minority community, and strongly recommended that government repair such structures, or reimburse repair expenses.

"Despite specific recommendations from a quasi-judicial and premier body like NHRC, Gujarat government has not taken any action for many years, and (only) after Gujarat High Court strongly passed the strictures, government placed the report before the state Assembly," she said.

"SIT has not even bothered to acknowledge the NHRC report which could corroborate our allegations that 2002 riots were not a general reaction to the Godhra train burning incident but was a well-planned conspiracy," Bhatt argued.