Click to play videoNew Delhi: The Gujarat government on Tuesday told the Supreme Court that the Special Investigating Team (SIT) probing the 2002 post-Godhra riot cases has found as "false" all major charges levelled against it by the NGO headed by social activist Teesta Setalvad.
"Reading of the report shows that all major allegations made by the NGO (Citizens for Justice and Peace) for the last five years have been found to be false by the SIT," senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for the Gujarat government, told a Bench headed by Arijit Pasayat.
The report of the apex court-appointed SIT, placed before the Bench last month in a sealed cover, was handed over only to the state government and senior advocate Harish Salve who is assisting the court as amicus curiae in the matter.
He and advocate Sourav Kripal said that among the allegations that a pregnant woman Kausar Bano's fetus was taken out and killed in Naroda Patiya has been found false.
They said questions have been raised on the role of the NGO and its advocate Mohammed Suhail Muhammed Husain Tirmizi who helped the witnesses in filing their affidavits relating to the riot cases.
Rohatgi said the report of the SIT clearly says the NGO, which had made the allegations against the BJP government, had given stereotype affidavits in almost all riot cases.
"The SIT has completely exonerated the state authorities and the police authorities. For the last many years, we had been stressing in the Supreme Court that the state had not taken any biased or partial attitude as had been alleged by NGOs," Rohtagi said.
"Finally the Supreme Court appointed the high-powered Special Investigative Team, which would report only to the Supreme Court. The Chairman is R K Raghavan, a very senior retired police officer. They went into all the allegations contained in the six to seven major cases, Such as Gulbarg Society case, the Naroda Patia case, the British Nationals case and many others. In all the cases, the horrendous allegations made by the NGOS against the state and its authorities, against the partial attitude of the authorities, against not helping the victims, have been found to be false," he added.
"It has been reported by the SIT that various affidavits filed by the witnesses were found to be stereotype affidavits. They were prepared by the NGOS. These were repetitive copies taken out from a computer and they were found to be wrong," he further stated.
Advocate Aparna Bhat, who was appearing for Citizens for Justice and Peace, raised objections to the state government making allegations against two members of the NGO.
However, the Bench said it was not going into the allegations.
"We are not going to say anything on allegations," the Bench - also comprising Justices P Sathasivam and Aftab Alam - said. "Justice must prevail. Truth can be arrived only if the atmosphere is there," the Bench observed.
At this point, senior advocate Indra Jaising, appearing for some victims, said "how can there be a conducive atmosphere when the government is same"? Her plea that victims should also be provided with the copy of the SIT report was not accepted by the Bench.
The apex court favoured setting up of designated courts for holding trial of post-Godhra riot cases on a day-to-day basis as delay would only lead to more allegations and counter-allegations.
The Bench reserved its order in this regard asking the state government, Salve and Additional Solicitior General Gopal Subramanium to place before it the suggestions by next Monday.
(With inputs from PTI)
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