Gujarat High Court upholds dismissal of 9 cops, says Godhra incident, where Hindus were massacred by Muslim mob, could have been prevented
On 24th April this year, the Gujarat High Court upheld the dismissal of 9 police officers for dereliction of duty in the 2002 Godhra carnage.
For the unversed, a total of 58 Hindu pilgrims (including 27 women and 10 children) who were travelling in the S-6 coach of the Sabarmati Express were burnt alive by a Muslim mob on the morning of 27 February 2002. The carnage took place near the Godhra railway station in Gujarat.
The court noted that the tragic incident could have been averted if the dismissed police personnel had not been negligent and careless.
“If the petitioners had departed in the Sabarmati express train itself to reach Ahmedabad, the incident that occurred at Godhra could have been prevented. The petitioners (displayed) derelict negligence and carelessness towards their duty. The said charges stand proved,” the Gujarat High Court observed.
The dismissed police personnel include Gulabsinh Devusinh Jhala, Khumansinh Jitsinh Rathod, Nathabhai Dhulabhai Bhabhi, Vinodbhai Bijalbhai, Jabir Hussain Rasul Miya Sheikh, Rasikbhai Rajabhai Parmar, Kishorbhai Devabhai Parmar, Kishorbhai Balubhai Patni, and Punabhai Motibhai Bariya.
The court observed that the 9 personnel of the Railway Police Force (RPF) were supposed to board the Sabarmati Express from Dahod on that fateful day, but they did not. Instead, they made false entries in the register and returned to Ahmedabad by the Shanti Express
The Gujarat High Court ruled that the removal of the police personnel from service in 2005 was justified. It added that their presence in the Sabarmati Express could have made a difference to what unfolded on 27th February 2002.
The 9 cops were previously charged with abandoning their assigned duty, falsifying the duty register, and failing to travel with the train they were supposed to escort.
“The petitioners, admittedly having been assigned such important duty, have casually thought it fit, not to travel by the assigned train and travelled by Shanti Express,” the Gujarat High Court observed.
Muslims responsible for burning the Sabarmati Express near Godhra railway Station
A total of 31 Muslims were found guilty of setting the Sabarmati Express on fire, which claimed the lives of 59 Hindus (mostly women and children).
11 of them were handed the death penalty by a special fast-track court on March 1, 2011.
Their names include Abdul Razzak Kurkur, Ismail Suleja, Jabbir Binyamin Behra, Ramzani Binyamin Behra, Mehboob Hassan, Siraj Bala, Irfan Kalandar, Irfan Patadia, Hassan Lalu, Mehboob Chanda, & Salim Zarda.
Their death penalty was later commuted to a life sentence in October 2017. Among the convicted, the other 20 were awarded life sentences.
They included Suleman Ahmad Hussain, Abdul Rehman Abdul Majid Dhantiya, Kasim Abdul Sattar, Irfan Siraj Pado Ghanchi, Anwar Mohmmad Mehda, Siddik, Mehboob Yakub Mitha, Soheb Yusuf Ahmed Kalandar, Saukat, Siddik Mohmmad Mora, Abdul Sattar Ibrahim Gaddi Asla, Abdul Rauf Abdul Majid Isa, Yunus Abdulhaq Samol, Ibrahim Abdul Razak Abdul Sattar Samol, Saukat Yusuf Ismail Mohan, Bilal Abdullah Ismail Badam Ghanchi, Farook, Ayub Abdul Gani Ismail Pataliya, Saukat Abdulah Maulvi Isamail Badam, Md Hanif.
As evident from the names, the extremists who burnt the train and charred 59 Hindu pilgrims to death belonged to the Muslim community. The conviction of the 31 extremists will continue to show the mirror to all conspiracy theorists who try to trivialise the planned killing of the Hindu pilgrims.
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