Modi can be prosecuted for promoting enmity: Amicus

A Supreme Court-appointedamicus curiaehas held that Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi can be prosecuted under various sections of the IPC for "promoting enmity among different groups" during the 2002 Gujarat riots.

The report by Raju Ramachandran on the complaint of Zakia Jafri is in sharp contrast to the report of the Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) which had earlier given a clean chit to Mr. Modi and others.

"In my opinion, the offences which can be made out against Shri Modi, at thisprima faciestage, are offences inter alia under Sections 153 A (1) (a) & (b) of IPC which means promoting enmity among different groups on grounds of religion and 153 B (1) which says assertions prejudicial to national integration," Mr. Ramchandran said in his report.

"He (Mr. Modi) should also be prosecuted under IPC 166 which says public servant disobeying law, with intent to cause injury to any person and 505 (2) meaning statements creating or promoting enmity, hatred or ill-will," theamicus curiaesaid in the report.

The SIT in its report had rejected suspended IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt's allegations that Mr. Modi had given instructions in a meeting held on February 27, 2002 to "allow Hindus to vent their ire and teach Muslims a lesson" in the wake of the Godhra train burning incident.

Mr. Bhatt had filed an affidavit before the Supreme Court in this regard.

Regarding Mr. Bhatt, theamicus curiae(adviser to court) said that "in my opinion, despite the aforesaid background (SIT rejecting Mr. Bhatt's claims), it does not appear very likely that a serving police officer would make such a serious allegation against Shri Modi, the Chief Minister of the State, without some basis".

The complainant, Ms. Jafri, was on Monday handed over the SIT report, along with the report of theamicus curiae, by the SIT in the court of the metropolitan magistrate.

Ms. Jafri's husband and former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri was among 69 people killed at the Gulberg Society during 2002 post-Godhra riots.

source: PTI