A Metropolitan Magistrate’s court in Ahmedabad yet again deferred the pronouncement of order on Zakia Jafri’s petition and decided to pronounce it on December 26.
Zakia Jafri, widow of slain Muslim leader Ehsan Jafri, filed a petition against the closure report of Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) that gave clean chit to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and others in the 2002 post-Godhra riots case.
Pronouncement of order in the case is being eagerly awaited as it is directly related to Narendra Modi, who is also BJP’s prime ministerial candidate. On Monday, Metropolitan Magistrate BJ Ganatra came to the court for a brief period and informed the lawyers of both the sides that he would pronounce the order on December 26.
In the much-talked-about case, the court take notes of arguments from both the sides which lasted for nearly five months till the end of September this year. Subsequently, on September 30, Ganatra said, he would pronounce the order on October 28, but on that date also, he deferred the pronouncement and given December 2 as the new date to pronounce the order. However, history repeated on Monday too as he again gave new date.
Former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri was killed in the Gulbarg Society massacre in Ahmedabad in 2002 riots which erupted following burning of Hindu Pilgrims in the train at Godhra Railway station.
Apart from Jafri, 68 others were also killed in the Gulbarg Society incident.
Following Zakia Jafri’s complaint naming Modi and others behind the infamous riots, SIT had given its final report in February this year and gave clean chit to Modi and others.
Almost two months after the report was submitted to the court, Zakia filed a petition in April seeking order to police to file chargesheet against Modi and others as well as rejection of the SIT report.