A week after they were arrested by the Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) for their alleged involvement in the Naroda Gam massacre of February 28,2002,Maya Kodnani and VHP leader Jaydeep Patel were on Saturday sent to judicial custody in the Sabarmati Central Jail here. Kodnani,was however later arrested by the SIT on a transfer warrant in connection with its investigations in the Naroda Patiya massacre case. Kodnani was arrested by the SIT team for further investigating Naroda Patiya case on a transfer warrant from Sabarmati Central Jail. She is likely to be produced before a city court on Sunday in order to seek her police remand, special public prosecutor in the case Sudhir Brahmbhatt said. Escorted by the Gujarat Police,Kodnani and Patel were produced in the court of Metropolitan Magistrate G M Patel. Fearing threat to the life of Patel from POTA accused in the jail,including those who are accused of allegedly hatching a conspiracy to kill him to avenge the 2002 Gujarat riots,Patels counsel Mitesh Amin requested the court to provide his client special protection. Kodnani,while addressing the media at the court premises,blamed senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal and social activist Teesta Setalvad for defaming Gujarat and tarnish its image.
