SC on Modi’s Role in Godhra Riots

The Supreme Court has directed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) that probed the 2002 Godhra train fire and the subsequent riots to investigate a complaint against the Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, his cabinet colleagues and top police and administration officials that they had aided and abetted the mob violence.

The SIT, headed by former CBI Director RK Raghavan, would submit its report within three months. The Bench issued the order on a petition filed by one Jakia Nasim Ahesan, widow of a riot victim. Senior counsel Prashant Bhushan, appearing for the petitioner, relied on the affidavits of RB Srikumar, who was ADGP of Gujarat at the time of the riots, filed before the Nanavati Commission, which had also gone into the issue.

For seven years the widow of former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri, who was murdered in cold blood along with many others at a prominent housing estate, had sought justice. She had pleaded that under Modi’s instruction the state police had refused to register a FIR in the broad daylight killing of her husband and others. The Gujarat high court did not think she had a case.

Charges of Illegal Instructions

Jakia had approached the then DGP, PK Chakravarty, to register an FIR and on his refusal approached the Gujarat High Court through a writ petition. The High Court, however, dismissed the petition on various grounds, including the petition had relied "heavily" upon the affidavits of Srikumar, the complaints were general in nature and that she could approach the SIT or a magistrate.

Appearing for Gujarat, senior counsel Mukul Rohtagi contended that the SIT had gone into the complaint but Bhushan disputed this, upon which the Bench issued the order.

The petition also alleged that Modi held meetings with his Cabinet colleagues and top-level bureaucrats at which “illegal instructions were issued” to “perform illegal acts”. This was evident from the deposition of then Minister Haren Pandya, since dead, before a Citizens Tribunal constituted and headed by former SC Judges.

Earlier, the Supreme Court had made it clear that it would “intervene” wherever necessary to ensure that fast-track courts (FTCs) conduct a “fair trial” in cases relating to the Gujarat riots. A three-Judge Bench headed by Justice Arijit Pasayat stated that the SIT that was monitoring the probe would also keep a watch on the trial and submit quarterly reports to the apex court.

Turn of Events

In plain terms, this order means that the Chief Minister is not off the hook, whatever his admirers might think of their man. The court’s direction could well enthuse the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Rashtriya Sewak Sangh (RSS) rank and file to root harder for Modi and rally round the party with gusto in the election season. For exactly the same reason, however, the impact could be the opposite on the party’s key NDA allies, some of which are leading political players in their respective states. The Congress would doubtless be delighted by the turn of events.

The Gujarat Chief Minister is, after all, being projected as the BJP’s prime ministerial candidate. There is no doubt that his abilities as an administrator in his state are noteworthy. Gujarat has among the best development indicators of any Indian State. Nevertheless, Modi’s reputation has been marred by the riots and the role that his administration played during the carnage and after.

In the current electioneering for the Lok Sabha, the Gujarat leader has emerged as his party’s most influential campaigner after Lal Krishna Advani.

Impartiality, important for any inquiry, becomes crucial when it comes to investigating a man as polarising as Modi. The SIT must not just act independently; it must be seen to do so. Giving the Gujarat chief minister a free pass is as unfair as going after him for political reasons — and it does ill-service to those hacked in the horrors of Gujarat. An impartial investigation into Modi’s role in the Gujarat riots will help answer India’s most polarising debate, one way or the other.

However, the ghosts of the past never seem to go away. Congress candidates like Sajjan Kumar and Jagdish Tytler have had to stand aside in Delhi owing to doubts over their role in the horrific 1984 anti-Sikh riots. The Gujarat riots have been bogged down in controversy since they took place. There are many who feel that Godhra was the starting point for what is now seen as among the worst riots in independent India.