NGO Jan Sangarsh Manch (JSM) on Wednesday moved the Nanavati Commission, which is probing the 2002 post-Godhra riot cases, to seek a final order on whether it would summon Chief Minister Narendra Modi and three others or not. The Commission has scheduled the further hearing on the application for August 25.
The NGO approached the Commission again after the Gujarat High Court direction on July 23 asking the riot panel to “look into the matter after taking into consideration the facts in their record”.
The state government’s lawyer has sought time to file a reply to JSM plea.
JSM has sought the summoning of Modi, Ashok Bhatt, the then health minister and now the
Assembly Speaker, Gordhan Zadafia, who was home minister at that time, and R J Savani, the then DCP of Ahmedabad, for their cross-examination in the post-Godhra riots cases.
The Commission has also reserved orders on another plea by JSM to summon three officials from the CMO. They are Omprakash Singh, Tanmay Mehta and Sanjay Bhavsar, whose cross-examination JSN has sought in an affidavit it had filed before the Commission a year ago.
In September last year, the Nanavati Commission had rejected JSM’s application seeking summoning of Modi and three others, saying they did not find any justification in cross-examining them at that point of time. Later, the JSM moved the High Court.
The Nanavati Commission had told the division bench headed by Chief Justice S J Mukhopadhaya during a hearing on April 1 that its decision of not summoning Modi was “not final”. In July, the court had, however, asked JSM to approach the Commission afresh.
Modi was questioned in connection with 2002 riots for over nine hours by the Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team(SIT) on March 27 this year following a complaint by one of the victims. The term of Nanavati Commission now stands extended for the 14th time till December 31 this year.
Source: Indian Express
