The allegations do not appear to be true in view of the other evidence on record. [22] Martha Nussbaum has challenged this narrative, stating that several inquiries have found that the conflagration was an accident rather than a planned conspiracy. Furthermore, the fire got initiated from inside as a result there were very less burn marks on the outside of the coach below the windows. There is material to show that the police had saved lives and properties of many persons by taking effective steps and also helped them in moving to safer places. [66] More than 100 people were arrested in relation to the incident. As the train started leaving the platform, someone pulled the emergency brake and the train stopped near the signal point. With respect to the Visnagar incident, the Commission observed, “Initially, it was not stated that the persons in the mob belonged to the BJP or any political or religious organisation. [73] The court asked the state government and railways to pay 10 lakh compensation to the families of each of the 59 victims. The convictions were based on the murder and conspiracy provisions of Sections 302 and 120B of the Indian Penal Code respectively and under Sections 149, 307, 323, 324, 325, 326, 332, 395, 397, and 436 of the Code and some sections of the Railway Act and Police Act. Godhra train burning was an incident that occurred on the morning of 27 February 2002, in which 59 people died in a fire inside the Sabarmati Express train near the Godhra railway station in the Indian state of Gujarat . Based on the complaints and material, Commission found several cases where Hindus alerted Muslims of probable attacks or provided them with shelter.”In Poshina town, president of BJP Minority Cell was threatened by Hindus for helping Muslims,” it said about Sabarkantha district. During this period, the Godhra train burning and the subsequent Hindu-Muslim riots led to over a thousand deaths in February–March 2002. Bilal was also alleged to have a connection with gang leader Latif and was reported to have visited Karachi in Pakistan several times. The Godhra train burning incident of February 27, 2002, had triggered the worst communal riots in the history of Gujarat, in which over 1,000 people were killed. An accused in Sabarmati Express train burning incident who was absconding since 2002 was arrested by the Godhra Local Crime Branch (LCB) in Gujarat's Panchmahal district today, police said. The hearing began in May 2009. Eight others were juveniles, who were tried by a separate court. [10][11] It noted that barring Mehsana that saw two convictions, the Sardarpura and DIpda Darwaja massacre cases in which 33 and 11 persons were killed respectively, several cases in which chargesheets were filed saw acquittals, going by the inference in the final report that was tabled in the Gujarat Assembly on Wednesday. [34] The evidence marshalled by the committee in favour of this conclusion was a statement made by Jabir Binyamin Behra, a criminal in custody at the time, although he later denied giving any such statement. ", "Hindu–Muslim Relations and the "War on Terror, Report By The Commission of Inquiry Consisting of Mr. Justice G.T. [55][56], The charge-sheet filed by the SIT before first class railway magistrate P. K. Joshi, which ran to more than 500 pages, stated that 59 people were killed in the S-6 coach of Sabarmati Express when a mob of around 1540 unidentified people attacked it near Godhra railway station. [31] The initial term of the committee was three months long; however, it received 22 extensions, till June 2014, to submit its final report. [76] R. K. Raghavan, who was the head of the Special Investigating Team, said he was satisfied with the verdict. [26][27], On 6 March 2002 the Gujarat government set up a commission of inquiry to investigate the incident and submit a report, the chairman and sole member of which was retired Gujarat High Court judge K G Shah. “There is no incident to show that either BJP, VHP or any other political party or its leaders or any religious organisations or their leaders had instigated attacks on Muslims. The driver of the train later stated that the chain had been pulled multiple times, judging by the instruments in his cabin. [32][33], In September 2008, the commission submitted the "Part I" of the report dealing with the Godhra incident, in which it supported the conspiracy theory originally propounded by the Gujarat police. [44][45][46][47][48][49][50], The BJP, which was then in opposition in the union parliament, dismissed the report as an attempt to gain an advantage in the Bihar elections which were to be held soon. About Mehsana, the home district of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was then chief minister of Gujarat, the Commission observed, “The district was affected more by the Godhra incident…” Three from this district were burnt alive at the Godhra railway station and the police expected disturbance when the dead bodies of the train carnage victims arrived, it said. The Indian Express is now on Telegram. The February 27, 2002 train burning incident in Godhra claimed the lives of 59 Hindus. [19], In February 2002, thousands of devotees of Lord Rama (known as "Ramsevaks" or "Kar Sevaks") had gone from Gujarat to Ayodhya at the behest of the Vishva Hindu Parishad to take part in a ceremony called the Purnahuti Maha Yagna. Taking note of the convictions, it said in the Dipda Darwaja case where a mob of 200 persons killed 11 Muslims, the special trial court convicted 83 who were chargesheeted. [36][37], The Communist Party of India (Marxist) and the Indian National Congress objected to the exoneration of the Gujarat government by the commission citing the timing of the report (with general elections months away) as evidence of unfairness. India Naroda Patiya case: SC asks Gujarat govt to file affidavit on convict's … The conviction was later upheld by the Gujarat High Court. The FIR had alleged that a 1540-strong mob attacked the Sabarmati Express on 27 February, minutes after the delayed train left the Godhra station on the day of the incident. [23][24] Conservative commentator Madhu Kishwar has blamed the "Congress and its leftist allies" for allegedly introducing "amazing distortions", which she sees as the reason why the facts are not widely known and accepted. [53] One of the alleged organisers of the attack was arrested in West Bengal. [57][58] The 68 people accused in the charge-sheet included 57 accused of stoning and torching the train. [67] Additional Sessions Judge P R Patel was designated to hear the case. A special court in Ahmedabad announced the quantum of sentence in the Godhra train burning case today.Eleven of the 31convicted were given death sentences. It cited instances to prove that in fact the Hindus were either assaulted for helping Muslims or they alerted the Muslims about possible attacks. 20 people got life-terms. As many as 253 witnesses were examined during the trial and over items of 1500 documentary evidences were presented to the court. In 2004, the POTA was repealed after the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) came to power, prompting it to review the invocation of the POTA against the accused. [51], By 28 February 2002, 51 people had been arrested for the incident on charges of arson, rioting and looting. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines. According to J Mahapatra, additional director general of the Gujarat police, "miscreants had kept the petrol-soaked rags ready for use much before the train had arrived at Godhra". BJP spokesperson, Ravi Shankar Prasad said the verdict had exposed the nefarious designs of the UPA government which tried to cover up the entire episode. Out of 461 offences, 106 offences were committed at night and 355 offences were committed during day time. [52] Lalu Prasad Yadav, then the minister for railways, cited the report as proof that the Narendra Modi government had organized the riots that followed, and called it an exposure of the BJP. [16][17] The event is widely perceived as the trigger for the Gujarat riots that followed, which resulted in widespread loss of life, destruction of property and homelessness. ... Ghanchis are being framed in the Godhra train carnage." [62] On 30 January 2018, Yakub Pataliya (63) was arrested from Godhra by a team of B Division police in the town after they received a tip-off that he was spotted in a locality. A-summary is filed in cases where the identity of the accused is not established for a prolonged period, while some cases continued to be pending in courts. [68][8], Maulvi Saeed Umarji, who was believed by the SIT to be the prime conspirator, was acquitted[58] along with 62 other accused for lack of evidence. [39][40], On 17 May 2004, with the victory of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) in the Indian general election, Lalu Prasad Yadav was appointed railway minister. The Sardarpura and Dipda Darwaja cases were among the nine cases investigated by the Supreme Court appointed SIT and tried in special courts appointed under its direct supervision. Nanavati And Mr. Justice Akshay H. Mehta, Detailed Report on the Godhra riots by the Concerned Citizens Tribunal, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Godhra_train_burning&oldid=998735721, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License, This page was last edited on 6 January 2021, at 20:13. Godhra train burning case: 2 get lifer, 3 acquitted: January 30, 2018: On the run for 16 years, Godhra train burning accused held: October 10, 2017: Godhra carnage was not an act of terrorism: HC: West Bengal's Chief Secretary, Sourin Roy, said the detainee was a commander of the Muslim radical group Harkat-ul Jehad-e-Islami, who was allegedly attempting to enter Bangladesh. In February 2003, the POTA was re-invoked against all the accused after the BJP retained control of the Gujarat legislature in the 2002 assembly elections.[64][65]. The charge-sheet also stated that a mob attacked the police, prevented the fire brigade from approaching the burning train, and stormed the train for a second time. In November 2003, the Supreme Court of India put a stay on the trial. [25], A study conducted by the Gujarat Forensic Science Laboratory report states that the fire was due to the inflammable liquid emptied by the attackers into the coach. The commission termed the Godhra train burning "an accident" in its report, submitted in 2006. As many as 59 pilgrims on board were charred to death when a coach of the train was … Modi had no role in Godhra untill burning of train (Sabarmati Express) by miscreants. [citation needed] On 17 March 2002, chief suspect Haji Bilal, a local town councillor and a Congress worker,[54] was captured by an anti-terrorist squad in Godhra. There is no evidence to show any involvement of the Ministers or leaders of any political party in the incidents which happened in this district,” it said. 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Find Godhra Train Burning Case Latest News, Videos & Pictures on Godhra Train Burning Case and see latest updates, news, information from NDTV.COM. The districts are Mehsana, Sabarkantha, Banaskantha, Gandhinagar and Patan, where rest of the complaints saw A-summaries being filed, according to the report. The Godhra train burning case refers to the train that was returning with passengers from the site of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya that had been demolished in 1992. [60] On 24 July 2015, the prime accused in the Godhra case, Hussain Suleman Mohammad, was arrested by the Godhra crime branch from Jhabua district of Madhya Pradesh. The puzzle remains - Frontline. [71] Thus, all the 31 accused who were convicted earlier in 2011 by the SIT court were given life imprisonment. The Supreme Court set up a special investigation team to probe the cases of Godhra train burning and Gujarat riots. - Quora. Only in two cases, it was alleged that VHP persons had taken part in those incidents… The incidents against Muslims appear to have happened because of the anger of the people on account of the Godhra incident. Second case of conviction came in the Sardarpura incident where 33 persons were killed by a “big mob of Patels” who set houses on fire. The trial was completed in September 2010; however, the verdict could not be delivered because of the Supreme Court stay. About Sabarkantha, it finds the highest number of incidents happened in Idar taluka (78), followed by Bhiloda (73), Modasa (69), Meghraj (55), Himmatnagar (49) and Prantij (38). [60] The stay was lifted in January 2011 and the judge announced that he shall pronounce the judgement on 22 February 2011. Estimates of casualties range from the official figures of 790 Muslims and 254 Hindus,[18] to upwards of 2,000 casualties. Godhra train burning case: Yakub Pataliya gets life term. 59 people including 27 women and 10 children were burnt to death, and 48 others were injured. There is no evidence to show involvement of any Minister of the State Government in the incidents or any interference by a Minister in the functioning of the police,” it stated. The president of Godhra municipality, Mohammed Hussain Kalota, was arrested in March. Godhra, a city of the Indian State of Gujarat, was the lead story in all Indian newspapers on February 27th-28th, 2002. The commission set up by the Government of Gujarat to investigate the train burning spent 6 years … In its report on north Gujarat, The Nanavati Commission gave a clean chit to the police, BJP, VHP and Bajrang Dal and attributed the massacres in Mehsana and Sabarkantha districts of this region, to anger on account of the Godhra train burning incident of February 27, 2002.It cited instances … As a result, the government reconstituted the commission into a two-member committee, appointing retired Supreme Court judge G T Nanavati to lead the commission, which thus became known as the "Nanavati-Shah Commission". Shortly after the train left the Godhra railway station at 7: 48 a.m., a mob (the estimates of the numbers of which have ranged from 500 to 2000) stopped it. On the performance of the police, it said, “… a number of affidvaits have been filed stating that the police had taken prompt and effective steps to curb violence in the district. [30] The commission, during its six-year probe, examined more than 40,000 documents and the testimonies of more than 1,000 witnesses. It also placed on record a case of “Hindu assaulted for helping Muslims”. He cited a forensic report stating that the injuries on the victims were only compatible with an "internal fire." “Six persons who have filed a joint affidavit making an allegation against the police and the Chief Minister appear to be closely related to each other. Godhra train burning On 27 February 2002, fifty-nine Hindu pilgrims, returning from Ayodhya after a religious ceremony at the Ram Temple site were burnt alive in the S-6 coach of Sabarmati Express. What is the Gujarat Godhra incident? The Godhra train burning case was tried in a court of law and the judgment has been delivered after nine years. Being Chief Minister of the province, he was required to handle aftermath of the gruesome event. Handling of the riots that followed across Gujarat has been a matter of unending controversy. 16500 of 2005", "HC terms Sabarmati Express panel illegal", "Godhra report attempt to help Laloo: BJP", "Gujarat HC nullifies Banerjee Committee", "Dozens arrested over India train attack", "Godhra, 'secular' 'progressives' and politics", "Chargesheet filed against 66 Godhra accused", "Chief suspect in India train attack arrested", "Charge sheet filed against 66 accused for Godhra mayhem", "Special court convicts 31 in Godhra train burning case", "Chargesheets filed in Godhra train carnage case", "Godhra train carnage judgement tomorrow", "Godhra carnage: Main accused held after 13 years", After 14 yrs, man who added fuel to Godhra fire arrested, "2002 Godhra train burning: 63-year-old accused arrested after 16 years", "Court: set up six fast track courts to try Godhra & riot cases", "Godhra carnage: fast-track court begins proceedings", "It was not a random attack on S-6 but kar sevaks were targeted, says judge", "Guj govt challenges acquittals in Godhra verdict before HC", "2002 Godhra train burning case: Gujarat HC commutes death sentence of 11 convicts to life imprisonment", "2002 Godhra train burning case: Gujarat high court commutes death for 11 convicts to life in prison - Times of India", "In Godhra Train Blaze, Alleged Mastermind And 30 Others Acquitted Again", "Godhra Train Burning Case: HC Faults State Govt, Orders Rs 10 Lakh for Victims' Kin", Godhra verdict proves Lalu's man wrong, again, "Godhra Train Carnage Verdict: Reactions", "Gujarat violence film set for Friday release", "Communal Riots in Gujarat: The State at Risk? The court convicted 31 accused and acquitted 42. Godhra case: Vested interests spreading lies on summon date, says Modi 22 Mar, 2010, 08.09 PM IST. [72] while, 63 others who were acquitted in 2011 by trial court, were re-acquitted by high court, including the alleged mastermind. This was later unsuccessfully challenged by a relative of the victim before the Gujarat High Court and later on appeal before Supreme Court. [61] On 18 May 2016, a heretofore missing `conspirator' of the event, Farooq Bhana, was Arrested from Mumbai by Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS). [8] A commission appointed by the central government, whose appointment was later held to be unconstitutional, stated that the fire had been an accident. 2,500+. Explore more on Godhra Train Burning Case. In May 2005, the POTA review commission decided not to charge the accused under POTA. Congress spokesperson Veerappa Moily commented at the strange absolvement of the Gujarat government for complacency for the carnage before the commission's second and final report had been brought out. The Gujarat High Court commutes the death sentence of 11 persons convicted in the Godhra train burning case to life imprisonment but upholds the conspiracy theory, ignoring valuable evidence. [77], 27 February 2002 incident (Gujarat Commission Report), sfn error: multiple targets (2×): CITEREFBurke2011 (, sfn error: no target: CITEREFNussbaum2008 (, sfn error: multiple targets (2×): CITEREFNussbaum2007 (, "Death for 11, life sentence for 20 in Godhra train burning case", "Eleven sentenced to death for India Godhra train blaze", "Godhra verdict: 31 convicted, 63 acquitted", "Godhra train fire verdict prompts tight security measures", "Godhra Train Carnage: Gujarat HC Commutes Death Penalty Of 11 Convicts; Awards 10 Lakh Compensation To Victims' Kin", "Godhra Sabarmati Express burning case: Gujarat HC commutes death sentence to 11 convicts into life imprisonment", "Fifty-eight killed in attack on Sabarmati Express", "Sabarmati Express drivers appear before panel", "Report of Forensic Science Laboratory, State of Gujarat", "Newly appointed justice Mehta of Nanavati Commission visits Godhra", "Gujarat: Nanavati Commission submitted its first report on 2002 riots in state", "With 21st extension, Nanavati report after LS polls", The Godhra conspiracy as Justice Nanavati saw it, "Godhra case: Eventually, Maulvi Umarji comes out unscathed", "Godhra carnage a conspiracy: Nanavati report", "Gujarat may come clean today, say 1,180 died in riots", "Cong, CPM question Nanavati report's credibility", "Excerpts from the Justice U C Banerjee Committee report", "Union of India vs. Nilkanth Tulsidas Bhatia, LPA No. Anti-social elements appear to have taken part,” the Commission concluded. 11 others were charged with being part of this mob. In January 2005 Banerjee presented his interim report, which tentatively ascribed the fire as an "accidental fire," after ruling out other theories. This was 500-700 meters away from the Godhra railway station, at Signal Falia area. It was at a later stage that some allegations were made against local BJP leaders…” The Commission further observed that two BJP leaders were acquitted subsequently. [41][42][43], Banerjee's findings were challenged in the Gujarat High Court by Neelkanth Tulsidas Bhatia, who was injured in the incident. AHMEDABAD: The mystery over the burning of the S-6 compartment of Sabarmati Express at Godhra on February 27, which killed 59 passengers and set off an unprecedented spate of communal frenzy all over Gujarat, has turned deeper with the forensic report on the incident discounting the possibility of the mob throwing inflammable liquid from outside and … In September 2008, the Nanavati Commission submitted its report on the incident. 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