Ahmedabad, Sep.19 (ANI): In a major reprieve for Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, the Justice Girish Thakorlal Nanavati Commission on Saturday confirmed that it would not be issuing any notice to him in connection with the communal riots in Veraval.
However, the commission has asked the State Government to give it transcripts of the conversations that took place prior to the riots, during the riots and in its aftermath.
The commission has so far given a clean chit to Modi in the post-Godhra events. The Nanavati Commission said there was no evidence to show there was lapse in Modi’s or his ministers’ role in providing protection, relief and rehabilitation to the victims of communal riots or in the matter of not complying with the recommendations and direction given by the National Human Rights Commission.
Communal attacks on Muslims took place in Gujarat between February and May 2002.
The riots occurred after the burning of the Sabarmati Express. According to official figures tabled in the parliament, more than a thousand people were killed (790 Muslims and 254 Hindus) in the violence after the train incident. More than two hundred and fifty thousand people were displaced (about 200,000 Muslims and 40,000 Hindus).
Organizations such as Human Rights Watch criticized the Indian government for failure to address the resulting humanitarian condition of people, “overwhelming majority of them Muslim,” who fled their homes for relief camps in the aftermath of the events.
Many of the investigations and prosecution of those accused of violence during the riots have been opened for reinvestigation and prosecution. According to an official estimate, 1044 people were killed in the violence, including those killed in the Godhra train fire. Another 223 people were reported missing, 2,548 injured, 919 women widowed and 606 children orphaned. About 100,000 Muslims and 40,000 Hindus were in relief camps. (ANI)
Robbers assault woman; residents nab two of gang
Two robbers were nabbed by residents of Willingdon Colony while they were trying to flee after assaulting a 54-year-old woman on Tuesday night. When a gang of four robbers broke into the house of 60-year-old Hartman Arousio, little did they knew that his wife was inside. As a security measure, Arousio, a homeopathic doctor, used to lock the door from outside before leaving for his clinic.
Senior police inspector Dilip Gaikwad of Santa Cruz police said, “Arousio and his wife Mabel stay at Willingdon Colony. Arousio said he used to lock the door from outside to ensure his wife’s safety. His wife would hardly venture out of the house.” The robbers must have kept a tab on Arousios’ movements. On Tuesday night around 9.15, four robbers entered the house through a window on the first floor.
“The robbers must have thought that the house is empty. However, after entering the room, they were taken aback when they saw Mabel. They hit her with a wooden plank to stop her from raising an alarm,” said Gaikwad. The robbers then searched the house for valuables and cash, but could not find anything. They finally left with some old clothes. While they were fleeing, a few residents spotted them and nabbed two of them.
Jeetu Dedhia, a resident, said, “We were taking a stroll when we spotted four people moving around in a suspicious manner. One of them even tried to hide the bags behind the bushes. We then gave them a chase and managed to nab two of them.”
Mabel was taken to Nanavati Hospital and is under treatment for the head injuries. Arousio was unavailable for comment. Gaikwad said, “We have arrested the two accused and booked them for trespassing and assault.”