Thread by @barandbench

Justice AM Khanwilkar led bench to continue hearing a petition filed by Zakia Jafri, widow of slain Congress MP Ehsan Jafri, challenging the Special Investigation Team’s (SIT) clean chit to then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in the 2002 Godhra riots #supremecourt

Sibal: Article 21 has an aspect where a person can be deprived of life and liberty in accordance with procedure established by law. What CRPC does is to establish that procedure #zakiajafri #supremecourt #gujaratriots

Sibal reading out Section 157 CrPC on procedure for preliminary enquiry.

Without a pure unbiased investigation, the procedure established by law would be violated: Sibal

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

You can't investigation one person and protect another for reasons best known to you: Sibal

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

If you simply accept a potential accused's statement, then it is not investigating. The investigation needs to find the footprints: Sibal.

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt #GujaratRiots

The most important part of investigation is purity of process: Sibal

#GujaratRiots #SupremeCourt

Why was SIT set up? Because NHRC moved Supreme Court stating local police was not investigating matters properly: Kapil Sibal

#SupremeCourt #GujaratRiots #ZakiaJafri

In my case no FIR was registered by local police: Sibal

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal recounting his experiences during 1984 riots.

"I was living at Maharani Bagh. And houses of two Sikh gentlemen there were already identified by the mob. They came only for those houses," says Sibal.

#ZakiaJafri

Sibal reading out how similarly muslim houses were identified during 2002 Gujarat riots.

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal says the analysis about violent incidents, mob identifying muslim houses was done by the petitioner.

"We translated Gujarati in two months and provided these details. This should have been done by SIT," Sibal.

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Violence had started the same day when dead bodies were brought to Ahmedabad.

"Nobody had to wait till 12.45 next day to declare a curfew," Sibal.

#GujaratRiots #SupremeCourt #ZakiaJafri

"The SIT was rendering conclusions contrary to facts they were aware of. In fact, SIT should be investigated. It is true," Kapil Sibal.

#SupremeCourt #ZakiaJafri #GujaratRiots

All those who collaborated were rehabilitated in a big way. Raghavan who headed SIT was made High Commissioner of Cyprus: Sibal.

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt #GujaratRiots

Sibal reading out more instances of violence and lack of action by authorities.

"I can't go on and on. No investigation into it at all. The SIT has ignored all of this, Magistrate has ignored all of this, High Court has ignored all of this," Sibal.

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

"I am repeating it, I am not concerned with individuals. I am concerned with the process. I am only saying SIT did not do its job. It was an act of protection. It did a collaborative exercise," Sibal.

#GujaratRiots #SupremeCourt

"I will show how VHP people asked public prosecutors to do things and PPs saying they did it. What kind of investigation and closure report," Sibal.

We have call data records of then Ahmedabad Police Commissioner PC Pandey which shows he was conversing with accused: Sibal.

He says he had no idea about the violent incidents. There were virtually no order from Pandey to take action against violence: Sibal

#GujaratRiots #Zakia #SupremeCourt

SIT says he was handling dead bodies of Godhra victims but call data records show he was sitting in office whole day long: Sibal

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt #GujaratRiots

Is it his job to handle dead bodies. If he was so concerned would he have allowed the bodies to be brought by road from Godhra to Ahmedabad and allowed passions to flare up: Sibal

PC Pandey was one of the worst collaborators. He later became DGP of Gujarat. The journey from accused to DGP is disconcerting: Sibal

#GujaratRiots #ZakiaJafri

The SIT should have done all this investigation. Instead we did it: Sibal.

Prima facie case of conspiracy is clear. No judge can say there was no conspiracy. Who all are doing involved and why needed further probe: Sibal.

#GujaratRiots #SupremeCourt

Statement of Zameer Uddin Shah, the Lieutenant General who led Army to tackle riots and who said Army was stuck at (Ahmedabad) airport for one day, was never recorded: Sibal

#GujaratRiots #SupremeCourt

Why did this whole concept of protest petition come about. Under law only State is empowered to prosecute. State's role is to stand for victim and secure justice: Sibal

#SupremeCourt #GujaratRiots

Sibal: it is the duty of the investigating agency to see that the channel and stream of evidence is pure. if that does not happen then there is no reason for having a SIT. This is happening in many cases and all over

#GujaratRiots #SupremeCourt

Sibal: just 5 days after the appointment of SIT constituted by supreme court one batch of evidence was destroyed. If the destruction was in routine manner why did PC Pandey keep a record and then produce it later?

#GujaratRiots #SupremeCourt

If the investigating agency does not do its duty, the victim suffers doubly - at the hands of the accused and then at the hands of investigation agency which did not do its duty: Sibal

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

in matters of riots, high courts have been saying that newspaper reports should be looked at since it is contemporaneous evidence. journalist statements should be recorded but none of this was done. : Sibal

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

SIT deliberately chose to leave phone call records unauthenticated. Police officials had to be summoned to verify the CD and even that was not done: Sibal

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: each statement of SIT is rebutted here in protest petition with evidence.

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: There were panic messages by police official stationed at sola civil hospital and explosive interviews were given by kar sevaks saying violence will be unleashed on Muslims.. so all this was known to the police but no action was taken

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: members of RSS already gathered at sola civil hospital, if jaideep patel says he did not know and everything was peaceful then how 3,000 people reached there... they were not family members of deceased but all #RSS people

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: this was all building up to the riots that was going to take place. there is a chilling account of how 8 persons were burnt alive. according to investigation many of the news items were false but printed only to inflame passions

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: the bandh later became an excuse for the marauding mobs.

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Justice Kahnwilkar: Inaction during crime and inaction during the investigation is different which you will also appreciate. How is this relevant? that's why SIT was created by SC.

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Justice Khanwilkar: inaction during the investigation is not relevant for larger conspiracy, inaction during the crime helps in establishing the larger conspiracy

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: There is a manual as to how officers should perform during communal riots. question is why was it not followed. question is why wad the mob allowed to run a muck

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: now we are on the partisan role of public prosecutors. no remedial action was taken

Bench takes a minute to discuss among themselves

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: information qua larger conspiracy is only an information but its obligatory for state to take note of all cognizable offences. law is clear if the complaint is of larger conspiracy in the course of probing that, what was found was serious offences
#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: i will show you statements of RSS and VHP fellows that public prosecutors were acting at their behest.

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: this also shows the forming of conspiracy and these people should have been behind bars.

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: if today ti was the case then UAPA would have been invoked. the protest petition deals with all aspects and shows how police officers acted, not taking preventive measures, public officers collaborating, not reaching offence sports, destroying evidence

#ZakiaJafri

Sibal: in light of what was presented before the magistrate, he could have taken cognizance as there were instances of extra judicial confessions too and that is a very portent piece of evidence as per an earlier judgment.

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: State IB messages in tehelka sting validated by CBI was on record, there was no deployment of forces, no arrests and no curfew was declared.

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sr Adv Sibal gets disconnected

Sr Adv Sibal video resumes: sometimes humans fail us and sometimes technology fails us

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Matter to resume post 2 pm
#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Hearing resumes

Sibal: the SIT without examination had accepted the statement of Mr Haresh Bhat. the SIT didi not investigate the matter of arms and ammunitions being manufactured and in usual course arrests would have been done to probe.

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal:i have given actual documents if you see.VHP Gujarat had intimated that thousands of sevaks will join the maha yagna.

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: what else do we need for conspiracy... courts have convicted accused based on far lesser evidences.

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal takes the bench through witness statements

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: see the reasoning by the magistrate court to disregard the extra judicial confessions by Anil patel. it is a settled position that extra judicial confession when voluntary can be used to convict the accused

#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal reads statements to show how bombs were manufactured and supplied to "Hindu areas": they say bombs are used to blast dynamites so it will work in this case too. what was SIT doing? there was no investigation but only an effort to protect

Sibal: SIT only worked to protect the VHP, Bajrang Dal , RSS members and protect people worthy of names #ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: our contention is that SIT did not even maintain a case diary. they never took the statement of NHRC, no statement from citizens tribunal and all of them indicted.
#ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: all the swords recovered very brand new and bore the same manufacturing mark of Sirohi, Rajasthan. VHP members had said that distribution of swords took place for almost a month. #ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Sibal: VHF joint secretary Jaideep Patel denies any distribution of swords "in the last few days", but
admits that swords and trishuls are routinely distributed to volunteers.

Sibal: "We've been distributing these weapons since 1985; trishul diksha samarohs and Bharatiya abhyans are a constant process," he said. "Nobody has objected, not even the police." said Patel #zakiajafri #supremecourt

Sibal: Police officers have a different view of the tempered, well-sharpened steel. Holding up one
confiscated sword, a police officer said, "Look, most of them are more than four feet long. They
slice through flesh on touch. Just touch the edge to a man's throat and dead"

Sibal: Requesting anonymity, an officer said there was no doubt the distribution was well-organised. "Some of the men arrested during seizures said that during the trishul diksha samaroh last November, swords were given to any volunteer who paid Rs 200," he said.

Sibal: after the sing operation what was the SIT doing? we have given statements made on the sting and the statements taken by SIT. One is Anil Patel, then is Babu Bajrangi, Bharat bhat, deepak shah and dhaval patel, hemant bhat, dilip trivedi, prahlad raju, madan, mangilal jain

Sibal: then there was suresh richard, rajendr vyas and ramesh dave. these are the people who has statements made in sting. CBI had made a detailed submission authenticating the sting.

Matter to resume on Tuesday, November 16, 2021
#supremecourt #zakiajafri

[Gujarat Riots] Special Investigation Team itself should be investigated for rendering conclusions contrary to facts: Zakia Jafri to Supreme Court

report by @DebayonRoy

#GujaratRiots #ZakiaJafri #SupremeCourt

Read story: bityl.co/9Xyx