Click to play videoGodhra: Six years ago, coach S-6 of the Sabarmati Express was burnt causing the death of 59 Kar Sevaks making it the flashpoint of the 2002 Gujarat riots.
Ishaq Mumdu is among the 134 accused of burning the train. Arrested under POTA, he has been in jail for five years.
But the twist is that Mumdu is blind and is one amongst the 84 who are languishing in this State Central Jail.
“He was kept in the lockup for eight days and then moved to Sabarmati jail. They haven’t let him go since,” says Mamdu’s father Mohammed Mamdu.
The Gujarat Police have not been able to prove any of the charges either against Mamdu or even the other accused.
So, how did a blind man make it to the list of those accused and were others arrested on equally flimsy grounds?
Mumdu's chargesheet does not explain how he reached Godhra station. Ironically, a 100 per cent blindness certificate, issued by the Gujarat Government, is now Mumdu’s family's only hope.
Says Mamdu's brother, Sabeer Mamdu, “This certificate is 100 per cent true. He cannot go anywhere alone. Gujarat government has given him this certificate.”
Inayat Juzar is another Godhra accused. His son says Shoaib was at his desk at Godhra's PWD office at the time of the incident.
“At 12:30 pm, I phoned my father. Later I got to know that some people were abducted and my father was among them,” says Juzar's son, Shoaib.
Affidavits from Inayat's colleagues - confirming he was at work - have not helped.
The reason that police give for Inayat's “multiple presence” is that he performed “black magic” after he was arrested, escaped from the police custody, went to his office to work and then got arrested again.
For over five years now, an innocent man has worn the tag of rioter and terrorist and been in jail. How many more like him are there among the all but forgotten Godhra accused? Only time will tell.
(With inputs from V K Shashikumar)
(For updates you can share with your friends, follow IBNLive on Facebook, Twitter and Google+)
 |
 |
 |
|
displayed with permission. Use of the CNN name and/or logo on or as part of CNN-IBN does not derogate from the intellectual property rights of Cable News Network in respect of them.