Gujarat riot probe panel moves against 41 cops

Set up last year on the Supreme Court’s direction, the riot inquiry committee—comprising 10 senior IPS officers—has found gla...

Set up last year on the Supreme Court’s direction, the riot inquiry committee—comprising 10 senior IPS officers—has found glaring lapses in the probe conducted into post-Godhra riot cases and has initiated a departmental inquiry against 41 policemen.

The committee, in its quarterly report readied on January 31, says the 41 police officials have been accused of dereliction of duty during the 2002 post-Godhra riots and failure to maintain law and order when the state was in the grip of communal tension. The committee is likely to submit this report to the SC next week.

DGP A K Bhargava, the chairman of the committee, said: “This is for the first time that we have decided to take action against all those officials, who either did not investigate riot cases or ignored evidence before them.”

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Of the 41 policemen, eight are reportedly inspectors, 11 sub-inspectors and 22 constables. Sources said that the number could go up in the future as the committee is yet to review 400-odd riot cases.

While some could be suspended, others will be asked to explain the cause of their negligence and also at whose behest they were acting in a passive manner, a senior committee member said.

According to the report, of the 2,020 riot cases that were closed by the Gujarat police, 1,594 have been reopened while 40 have not been found fit for fresh investigations.

As many as 640 people have been arrested in connection with the 1,594 criminal cases. The police have registered 13 new cases, which were overlooked by the police in 2002. Committee members said they have been probing all cases in a phased manner and will soon finish reviewing all 2,020 cases.

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Last year, the SC had directed the Gujarat Government to set up a police panel, headed by the DGP, to reconsider closure reports filed in 2,020 riot cases and find out whether further probe was required.

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