Gujarat junks POTA panel report: Godhra fit case for terror law

In his 11-page reply before judge B S Parikh, Dhruv said: ‘‘Not only there is prima facie case against the accused under provisions of POTA, but there is more than sufficient evidence to attract provisions of POTA in the case.’’

‘‘The committee,’’ submitted Dhruv, had not considered the confessional statements of some of the accused in the right perspective as per Section 32 of POTA.’’

According to the committee’s report, the incident was not pre-planned, rather it was a spontaneous reaction. The committee had also stated that even if the attack on the train was a conspiracy, ‘‘it does not fall under the definition of terrorist attack’’.

The prosecution junked the committee’s claim that the carnage was a ‘‘fallout of a minor scuffle between vendors at the Godhra railway station and passengers of S-6 coach of Sabarmati Express.’’

That the carnage was pre-planned is evident from the fact that a huge quantity of petrol was collected a day prior to the incident, the state counsel submitted.

Several other instances, like stopping of the Sabarmati Express near Signal Falia, gathering of a huge crowd near the railway station, stone pelting and not allowing the Fire Brigade to douse the fire in the S-6 coach were cited as well.

‘‘These instances clearly indicate that a conspiracy was hatched by the accused to attack the Kar Sevaks returning from Ayodhya,’’ he said.

‘‘If the mob had no knowledge about the conspiracy, they would not have collected there (near Signal Falia) with deadly weapons, containers of petrol, kerosene, acid, at an early hour of the day,’’ the government said in its reply.

The Muslim vendors on Godhra platform had deliberately created a situation to get into a scuffle to overshadow their main conspiracy, it added.

‘‘The review committee’s decision cannot interfere in the judicial process and its role is to find if there is no prima facie case for proceeding against the accused. It can address the State government that the case is fit to be withdrawn and its role is limited only that far,’’ it added.

Detailed arguments on this reply would be held on June 13.

According to the special investigating team probing the case, there are 131 accused, of whom 106 have been arrested. The rest are still absconding. Two of the accused have died natural deaths. And in case of 14 of the accused, the exact nature of the offence has not been determined.

The POTA Review Committee, headed by Justice (retired) S C Jain of Allahabad High Court, had also recommended that the accused in the Godhra case could be tried under different sections of IPC and CrPC.