‘Now I believe guilty can’t walk away’

‘‘The judgment only strengthens my belief that the guilty cannot just walk away. The accused in the Best Bakery case were successful in getting away in the courts here, but ultimately they have been punished for what they did,’’ said Nadeerbhai Shaikh, a Naroda resident.

Eighty six people died in Naroda Patiya when a mob of thousands attacked the locality on February 28, 2002; the homes of thousands of others were burnt down as Muslim residences were systematically set on fire.

On Friday, the survivors refrained from celebrating or making their happiness obvious, lest it lead again to terrible reprisals. ‘‘The guilty have been punished and that is what we want—whether it’s Best Bakery, Naroda Patiya or the Gulbarg massacre case. It’s not a question of personal grievance against anybody, just a fight for justice,’’ said Zeenatbano Hassanbhai.

For Munirbhai Ahmed, who lost his son and his brother in the riots, it was a ‘landmark’ judgment. ‘‘This reflects badly on the State government—now, we too will go to another state for fair trial,’’ he said.