JOIN USSuresh Chhara, a convict in a Gujarat riots case out on parole reportedly assaulted a former television journalist Revati Laul in Ahmedabad on Wednesday evening, when she visited him to interview him for her book.
Revati Laul, who has worked with NDTV and Tehelka in the past, has been in the city for over a year now to pen down a book on the convicts in the 2002 Naroda Patiya massacre case.
She said that she was punched and slapped by Suresh Chhara when she was interviewing him at his house in Naroda. “I have been trying to meet him for some time now for my book and visited his house where he assaulted me,” Laul said.
“I think I made a mistake of assuming that he would not harm me as he is on parole and up for his next parole.”
She said that it was only after the intervention of others that she managed to protect herself from more harm. She was later treated at a government hospital and lodged a complaint with the Vejalpur police station.
Suresh Chhara was convicted to 31 years in prison in 2013 for his involvement in the Naroda Patiya massacre, one of the bloodiest episodes in the 2002 communal clashes that
saw nearly 100 people being killed.
He was released on parole by a local court less than a fortnight ago, to trace his teenage daughter who has been missing for last few months. Chhara’s former wife had said last month that he tried to rape her when he was released on parole few months ago, following which his parole was cancelled.
The Ahmedabad Police meanwhile has arrested Suresh Chhara on Laul’s complaint. “We have registered a case of assault by him and are also looking in to rape charges against him by his previous wife,” B C Solanki, ACP Crime Branch, told mediapersons.