Two years on, Juhapura family sees ray of hope

For a month, the Pathans kept the site of bloodshed outside their house intact for evidence even if it reminded them of the two sons of the ...

For a month, the Pathans kept the site of bloodshed outside their house intact for evidence even if it reminded them of the two sons of the family, gunned down during the riots following the Godhra carnage.

The family of Juhapura now hopes to find justice against four policemen who have been summoned by a local court.

Eighteen-year-old Mazhar Khan Pathan and his cousin Muntazir Miya Kadri were allegedly gunned down by the police in May, 2002. ‘‘On May 7, a Muslim instructor at the Industrial Training Institute was attacked by a Hindu mob. The police rushed to the spot to control the situation but residents started pelting stones,’’ said Sikandar Pathan. Chasing the rioters, inspector J.A. Upadhyay and other policemen entered a small lane behind Royal Akbar Tower in Juhapura where the two were playing carrom and shot them, he alleged.

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The Vejalpur police did not entertain the complaint against the killing of the youths, nor did they send the bodies for post-mortem. ‘‘We personally took the bodies to VS Hospital and requested for a post-mortem,’’ said Pathan.

For a month, the family kept the spot under plastic sheets and cordoned off the area. On June 6, 2002, the district court registered a case of murder against inspectors Upadhyay and M.D. Chaudhari and constables Dayabhai Chaganlal and Omprakash Keshmani. Inspector Barot, entrusted with the investigations, collected four bullets and the blood-stained clothes of the victims from the family.

The forensic report said the bullets had been fired from .303 rifles and .9mm revolvers, used by cops. The blood stains matched with the blood group of the victims. ‘‘After two-and-a-half years, we see the evidence protected by us against the police is recorded and they have been summoned,’’ said Saira, Mazhar’s mother.