CBI TO PROBE HARI MASJID FIRING

The Supreme Court, on June 30, directed the Central Bureau of Investigation to go ahead with its investigation into the Hari Masjid firing in Mumbai in which six persons were killed in 1992. A bench comprising justices P. Sathasivam and A.R. Dave upheld the Bombay High Court order entrusting CBI with the probe of the incident. The bench dismissed the appeal filed by the Maharashtra government against the 2008 direction of the High Court. The Apex Court directed the CBI to complete the investigation within six months. Earlier, when the appeal was filed by the Maharashtra government, the Apex Court had stayed the operation of the high court direction in September 2009. Victim Farooq Mohammed Qasim Mapkar and others had sought an independent probe into the alleged police firing on people offering prayers at the Masjid. The incident had occurred during the riots that followed after the Babri Masjid demolition.