Naroda Patia trial over, verdict in June

AHMEDABAD: The special SIT court on Friday completed trial in the Naroda Patia massacre case of 2002, and fixed June 30 for final verdict against 61 accused.
Former minister Maya Kodnani and Bajrang Dal leader Babu Bajrangi were among those who were prosecuted by the Supreme Court-appointed SIT before designated judge Jyotsna Yagnik.
In this incident, it is believed that 97 persons were killed on February 28, 2002 in the industrial locality of Naroda.As per the prosecution’s case, 94 bodies were found, out of which 84 could be identified. Three persons are still in the list of missing.
The city crime branch nabbed 47 persons and filed four chargesheets, but after the SC transferred the probe to SIT, 24 other accused were arrested including Kodnani. In all, eight chargesheets were filed in this case.
Two persons — Tejas Pathak and Mohan Nepali — jumped bail, whereas eight of the accused persons died till date. While one person was discharged, one accused Vinod Marathe is still absconding.
Special prosecutors Akhil Desai and Gaurang Vyas examined 327 witnesses and in all more than 500 documentary evidence were produced before the court. Those deposed before the court were 173 relatives of victims who were eyewitnesses, 41 panch witnesses, 17 officials, 42 doctors, 44 cops, one forensic experts and nine others.
There were applications filed by witnesses to arraign cops like former commissioner P C Pande, JCP M K Tandon, DCP P B Gondia, Naroda PIs K K Mysorewala and V S Gohil and SRP officials in this case. The court may decide this issue at the time of judgment.
Meanwhile, there were pleas filed for further investigation, but the court did not take any decision on them as SIT continued to maintain that further probe was underway as per the SC orders.
This is one of nine cases that SIT probed on SC orders. The trial in the case began in 2009 and lasted for 37 months.