Ahmedabad: The Nanavati Commission has rejected Indian Police Service officer Sanjiv Bhatt's application requesting for no more cross questioning in the 2002 Godhra riot case. The state counsel has alleged that Bhatt is not a credible witness as there were departmental inquiries against him.
The state counsel has also argued that Bhatt was willing to go to any lengths for his personal gain.
Bhatt in an affidavit filed in the Supreme Court in April had claimed that he was present in the meeting called by Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi on night of February 27, 2002, where Modi had instructed his officers to allow Hindus "to vent out their anger" during the clashes and he wanted Muslims to be "taught a lesson".
In the affidavit, Bhatt had also expressed concern about his and his family's security following his revelation about the chief minister. He has been provided an armed guard for self and one for his family stationed at his residence.
Bhatt, a 47-year-old police officer, who is currently heading the State Reserve Police Training Centre at Junagadh, has filed an affidavit in the Supreme Court accusing Modi, and also casting doubts about the functioning of the Supreme Court-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT) into the riots that followed the February 27, 2002 train burning.
In his affidavit, Bhatt clearly stated that it was during this tenure that he was summoned along with other senior officials and told to lie low as emotions were running high among Hindus following the burning of two coaches of the Sabarmati Express at Godhra, in which 59 Hindus, mostly Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), activists were killed. The activists were returning to Gujarat from Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh.
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