2002 riots: SC to hear plea vs Modi

The Supreme Court on Tuesday fixed for hearing on November 19 a plea made by Zakia Jafri, widow of Congress MP Ehsan Jafri, against the clean chit given to Narendra Modi, then chief minister, and others in 2002 Gujarat riots.

A bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar and Deepak Gupta put the petition filed against the Gujarat High Court's order of October 2017, that upheld clean chit given to Modi and others by the Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team.

Jafri, whose husband Congress MP Ehsan Jafri was burnt to death in their house Gulberg society, contended Modi, and 59 others, including bureaucrats and police officers, should be made accused for being a part of the criminal conspiracy for the 2002 riots.

Senior advocate Chander Uday Singh, appearing for the petitioner, contended the high court by its order dismissed her petition against the clean chit but allowed her to approach either the apex court or the trial court for reinvestigation.

She had approached the high court in 2014 after the trial court rejected the objection application by her against the clean chit given by the SIT headed by former CBI director R K Raghavan.