In a significant development, Sabirmiya Akumiya, a witness in the Sardarpura massacre has told the Special Court hearing Sardarpura riot case of Mehsana district of Gujarat that some BJP leaders had visited the village much before the Godhra incident, indicating a pre-planned conspiracy leading to the massacre. Sabirmiya deposed this before the special judge S.C. Srivastava on October 27 during the examination-in-chief, said the special public prosecutor in the case Suresh Shah. More tha...

Notwithstanding the fact that two Commissions of Inquiry and eight government-appointed committees have till date been constituted into the 1984 riots, many of the prime accused were either not charge-sheeted or were acquitted. Starting from the Marwah Commission appointed in November 1984, when Ved Marwah, Additional Commissioner of Police, was assigned the job of inquiring into the role of the police during the carnage, to the Nanavati Commission that was appointed by a unanimous resolution...

The Minority Commission of Uttar Pradesh has summoned defence authorities of Kanpur on November 13 in connection with the restriction to offer Salat at Bhajjapurwa Mosque. Commission’s Chairman S.M.A. Kazmi, in his directive, has also asked the Defence Secretary at the Centre to enquire into the matter and send some responsible defence officer. In his letter to the Defence Secretary, Mr Kazmi said, “According to facts the Bhajjapurwa Mosque at Kanpur is registered with the Wakf Bo...

Income Tax sleuths raided the residences of former Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda on October 28 after the Enforcement Directorate registered a case against him and his three former ministerial colleagues, Hari Narayan Rai and Enos Ekka, for alleged money laundering and diversion of state funds. According to a senior IT official, separate teams conducted raids at Koda’s residences in Ranchi and Chaibasa. The Enforcement Directorate had registered the case on October 9 against them a...