Godhra panel to complete report in 3-4 months
By IANSMonday, February 15, 2010
GANDHINAGAR - The Nanavati-Mehta Judicial Inquiry Commission probing the Godhra train carnage and the post-Godhra communal riots in Gujarat, is expected to complete its report in the next three to four months.
This was stated in a letter the commission submitted before a division bench of the Guijarat High Court in Ahmedabad Monday.
The letter put up before the bench of Chief Justice S.J. Mukhopadhyaya and Justice Anant Dave stated that the commission is in the process of recording its findings and was likely to complete the report in the next three to four months.
The division bench was hearing an application by NGO Jansangharsh Manch for a court directive to the commission to summon Chief Minister Narendra Modi and six others for cross-examination.
The high court has fixed the next hearing for March 22 to give time to the commission to see if it was required to summon the chief minister and others in the event of any adverse findings against them.
In case the commission finds anything objectionable against Modi and others named in the Manch application, it would be required to summon them for cross-examination under Section 8(B) of the Judicial Inquiry Commission Act without the high court requiring to issue any directive.
The Manch filed its application in the high court after the Nanavati-Mehta Commission maintained silence on the plea to summon Modi and chose to ask his three personal secretaries to file affidavits giving details of their telephonic talks with some of the riot accused, including the then Vishwa Hindu Parishad state general secretary Jaideep Patel.
The VHP office-bearer is one of the accused in the Naroda massacre case. Since Modi’s three personal secretaries have already responded with their statements before the commission, the Manch has now asked for them to be summoned for cross-examination. The three in their statements said that they had spoken to many people, including VHP general secretary Patel.
