Nanavati panel reserves order on summoning Modi

The Nanavati Commission, probing the 2002 post-Godhra riots, on Thursday reserved its order on an application, seeking summoning of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and three others for questioning.

The panel, comprising retired Justices G T Nanavati and Akshay Mehta, reserved the order on the plea filed by NGO Jan Sangharsh Manch (JSM) after the state government submitted its final reply opposing the application seeking summoning of Modi, Ashok Bhatt, Gordhan Jhadafia and R J Savani.

Advocate Tempton Nanavati, representing the state, argued that there was no need to call Jhadafia and Savani as their statements had already been recorded by the Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) which is probing nearly a dozen 2002 riot cases.

Besides, these statements have been included in the documents given to the commission by the SIT, he said. JSM counsel S H Iyer, however, said methods of interrogation and cross-examination by the Commission and SIT were different. The NGO, during an earlier hearing last month, had not pressed for summoning Modi and Bhatt.

After hearing both sides, the Commission reserved its order and the date for the ruling will be announced later.

Bhatt, the then health minister, is now Assembly Speaker while Jhadafia was home minister at the time of the riots. He later parted ways with BJP and floated his own party. Savani was the then deputy commissioner of Police of Ahmedabad. 

The Commission also reserved its order on JSM's another application requesting summoning of three officials of Modi's office - Omprakash Singh, Tanmay Mehta and Sanjay Bhavsar -for cross-examination in the 2002 riots.

These officials submitted affidavits to the panel last year. The Commission was also examining the documents prepared by SIT in Gulburg, Naroda Patiya and Naroda Gam riot cases (all in Ahmedabad).

The documents were supplied to the Commission on request last month. However, SIT has not given the statement of Modi, quizzed by the SC-appointed agency on March 27-28, to the probe panel.