What happened in Gujarat in 2002 was a national shame. I am still trying to figure out what really happened there, because I think the governments are hiding something. People might believe it begins and ends with Narendra Modi, but I think there is some deeper motive in what happened. But since I have no media or opinion to back me up, i'll just leave it at that.
Coming back to the Best Bakery case, here is what happened then. I might have a few facts wrong, but I believe this about covers up the broad scope of events. Post Godhra carnage, Gujarat witnessed mass violence aimed against Muslims in the state as retaliation. In Vadodara city, a mob torched a small Muslim-owned bakery business called Best Bakery, thus killing 14 people in it.
In the aftermath of the national tragedy that took place, the government of Gujarat set up fast track courts to try all the cases related to the carnage, including the Best Bakery case. The key witness, Zaheera Sheikh, who lost many of her close relatives in the fire, had turned hostile in the case more than once, sometimes blaming an NGO of pressuring her to name innocent persons in the case, and denying meeting influential figures before her trial.
Due to shoddy investigative work and a very weak prosecution, very similar to the one in the Jessica Lall case, obviously under political and other pressures, the fast track court acquitted all of the accused, citing lack of evidence and all of the other witnesses turning hostile as well. Note from the Indian Express story below that the court didnt even examine five key eye witnesses, including Zaheera's sister-in-law.
Then followed the intervention from human rights activists and other parties, claiming of obvious political interference, and then the Supreme Court stepped in. It was then that she said she was under pressure and that she did not expect to get justice in Gujarat for fear of safety of her family.
The then Chief Justice of India, VN Khare, took notice of the way the investigation was done, and ordered a retrial in 2004. He also ordered it to be outside of the state of Gujarat. The case moved onto Mumbai, where Zaheera and her family again turned hostile, and this is where she said the human rights activist Teesta Setalvad was pressuring her to name innocent people in the case.
Despite all the obstacles, finally the Special Court gave its verdict last week, sentencing 9 of the accused to life in prison. Judge Abhay Thipsay's verdict in Mumbai said he could not hand out a death sentence because each individual's role in the carnage was unclear. Eight were let off for want of evidence.
An important development is that the judge issued perjury notices to Zaheera and her family for giving false evidence to the court. This case could be a milestone in similar cases in the country. The Supreme Court saw through the political influence to get the decision in their favor and was prompt in action. As Zaheera and her family turned hostile for fear of their lives, they are also to blame for the numerous flip-flops and attempts to misguide the judiciary. The case also brings to light the extraordinary amount of influence that the rich and powerful are able to project on a witness. We are at fault because we still do not have a witness protection plan to deal with this.
This is from the Indian Express:
Justice denied, justice restored: Nine life terms for Best Bakery
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Bringing a glimmer of hope to thousands of Gujarat riot victims that justice delayed doesn’t have to be justice denied, a court in Mumbai, set up under unprecedented orders of the Supreme Court, today sentenced nine people to life in prison for the Vadodara Best Bakery massacre in which 14 were burnt alive.All the nine were among the 21 accused acquitted by a Vadodara fast-track court almost three years ago. Eight were acquitted today and four are still absconding.
That acquittal by the fast-track court in June 2003 had sparked off outrage—the judge had severely indicted the prosecution—and days after the verdict, Sehrunissa Sheikh, who lost nine relatives in the attack, had broken her silence to The Indian Express to say that she and her daughter Zaheera had “lied in court, trembling with fear.”
This set off a chain of events that led the Supreme Court to transfer the case out of the state in what came to be seen as a touchstone in judicial activism as a response to what the court called a justice system “abused, misused and mutilated by subterfuge.”
The prosecution examined about 75 witnesses in the trial which lasted for more than a year. Those convicted for murder and sentenced to life have also been convicted for several other offences and heavy fines levied on them, a part of which would be paid as compensation to those injured in the incident, the judge said.
In the re-trial, which began on October 4, 2004, a total of 76 witnesses were examined of which nine turned hostile. Of these nine, five belong to the Sheikh family. Among the important witnesses examined by the court were Zaheera’s sister-in-law Yasminbanu and four other persons.
Incidentally, none of these five witnesses was examined during the trial conducted by the fast-track court at Vadodara which acquitted all the 21 accused persons.
Zaheera yet to surface, to respond to perjury charges
"Zaheera is yet to contact me after Friday's verdict given by the Mumbai court. I have no idea if she is in Mumbai, Vadodara or Ahmedabad," advocate Atul Mistri, who represents Zaheera, told PTI in Ahmedabad Saturday.
When asked if he found it strange that his client's whereabouts remained unknown when such a crucial judgement was delivered, he said, "Yes it is strange, but there is nothing I can do."
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