SIT to decide if Modi should be probed further

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has said it was up to the Special Investigating Team to decide whether to further probe Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and 62 others in the 2002 Gulberg society massacre.

A bench comprising Justice DK Jain, Justice P Sathasivam and Justice Aftab Alam said this after the court-appointed amicus curiae Raju Ramachandran's observations on the SIT report.

"It will be open to SIT to consider further investigation, if considered necessary, in the light of the observation made by the amicus curiae and file a final report within six weeks. You go through the report. If you think further investigation is necessary. You conduct the probe," the court told SIT chairman and former Central Bureau of Investigation director RK Raghavan.

"If some more evidence is required to be recorded you may do it. We can't brush aside the observation of the amicus curiae," Justice Jain told the SIT chairman.

"The SIT inferences and evidence do not match its findings," the bench said while asking SIT to submit its report by April 25 on whether further investigations were required into the complaint.

The court posted the matter for further hearing to April 27. It also agreed to hear the application moved by the Gujarat Government seeking recall of the apex court's earlier order of April 27, 2007, directing SIT to look into the complaint against Modi and 52 others.