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Amit Shah finally comes to Maya Kodnani’s defence in Naroda Gram riots case

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Amit Shah court

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]Kodnani, already convicted in the Naroda Patiya riots case, had repeatedly sought Shah’s testimony in her defence to prove that she was with him when the riots broke out

Former minister in the Gujarat government and BJP leader Maya Kodnani finally managed to convince BJP national president Amit Shah to testify in her defence in the Naroda Gram riots case before the Ahmedabad sessions court, on Monday. Shah, who Kodnani claimed to be with when riots broke out in Ahmedabad’s Naroda Gram area on February 28, 2002, had so far evaded appearing in the court as a defence witness.

On September 8, the special court of judge PB Desai had given Kodnani time till September 12 to serve summons to the BJP national president to come before it and depose on her behalf. Shah was later granted time till today (September 18) to record his deposition at the Ahmedabad sessions court.

Shah arrived at the court premises around 11 am to record his statement and in what would have come as major relief for Kodnani – who is already convicted of inciting mobs and leading the riots in Naroda Patiya locality during the 2002 post-Godhra pogrom – corroborated her claims.

In his deposition that lasted for about 45 minutes, Shah endorsed Kodnani’s claim that she was with him in the Gujarat assembly when the riots in Naroda Gram broke out and that later the two went to the Sola Civil Hospital (located in Sarkhej assembly constituency which Shah was MLA of in 2002).

Kodnani’s counsel, Amit Patel asked Shah of his whereabouts on February 28, 2002 (the day of the Naroda Gram riots) to which he replied: “I went to the assembly at 8:30 am on that day. The Vidhan Sabha proceedings got over in about half an hour after condolences were given to Godhra victims… After the assembly got over, I received many calls from Sola Civil hospital as it was in my constituency, so I went there (at around 9.30-9.45 am).” Asked if Kodnani was with him at the Gujarat Assembly and then again at the hospital, Shah replied in the affirmative.

Maya Kodnani

Shah recounted the scenes at the Sola hospital, where bodies of ‘karsevaks’ killed in the Sabarmati train burning incident on February 27, 2002 – which is seen as the trigger for the killing of Muslims that took place over the next three days across Gujarat – were brought from Godhra.He said there was a “lot of commotion and confusion (at the hospital). Relatives of those who died were there and the post-mortem was on.”

“I was not allowed entry into the post-mortem room. I met with family members of the Godhra victims whose post mortem and identification was completed. There were several karyakartas with me, people were angry and were raising slogans when I was coming out of the hospital,” Shah recalled. He told the court further that he “tried to pacify the crowd but they surrounded me… police had to take me and Mayaben (Maya Kodnani) away from the spot in one of their jeeps. This was around 11 – 11:15 am.”

The BJP national president told the court: “Maya Kodnani did not go to Naroda Gam between being at the assembly session and Sola hospital” and that when the cases against them for their alleged roles in the riots began the two “did speak about (Shah) appearing as a witness (for Kodnani) in the Naroda Patiya case but the SIT has not bothered to ask me whether I was with her on February 28, 2002, or not.”

Kodnani has already been convicted (in 2012) and sentenced to 28 years in prison for her active role in instigating the Naroda Patiya riots. She was held as the “kingpin” of the riots. Kodnani and 31 other convicts in the Naroda Patiya riots case have challenged the verdict in the Gujarat High Court which concluded its hearing on August 30 and has reserved the verdict.

While Shah’s deposition in Kodnani’s favour shouldn’t surprise anyone (both were BJP legislators during the riots, were later inducted by then Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi into his cabinet and were considered very close to Modi then – Shah is still Modi’s closest aide), his acceptance of the court’s summons after having consistently evaded them for years is something that can be seen as politically relevant.

Naroda riots

Gujarat goes for Assembly polls in less than three months from now. With Shah finally choosing to defend Kodnani – the most high-profile BJP leader to have been convicted in a riots-related case – it seems that the BJP has signaled that Hindutva would still be an intrinsic part of its election campaign in the state where the saffron party has been in power for over two decades. The ghost of the post-Godhra riots which claimed as per official records the lives of over 800 Muslims (though activists and NGOs peg the figure to over 2000) has haunted Modi ever since but it has failed to keep his political fortunes from being on a constantly upward swing.

Shah’s defence of Kodnani possibly shows that though the state may want to move beyond the horrific memory of the country’s bloodiest riots in recent decades, the political brass – both Congress and BJP – are willing to keep it alive as a poll plank.

The riots have been a polarising factor in Gujarat politics – through the Congress’ bid to encash on it to unite minority votes against the BJP has failed to earn it any dividends. Now, at a time when the incumbent BJP – without Modi as chief minister – is facing a tough challenge in quelling dissent among the Patidars (due to the Patel agitation), Dalits (due to the Una flogging incident) and traders (unhappy over the GST regime), could the memory of post-Godhra riots once again help the BJP romp to power in the state riding on a fear psychosis among both – the Hindu and the Muslim communities?[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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Rahul Gandhi is right, Gautam Adani should be arrested: RJD president Lalu Yadav

“Rahul Gandhi is right. Adani should be arrested,” said Prasad, who is an old ally of the Congress and a staunch opponent of the BJP, to which Adani is said to be close.

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RJD president Lalu Prasad Yadav on Friday spoke in support of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s demand for immediate arrest of Gautam Adani, after the Industrialist was charged in the US for alleged bribery and fraud.

Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, said on Thursday that Gautam Adani should be arrested immediately, and his protector Madhabi Puri Buch should be investigated

The former Congress chief claimed that the recent developments vindicate his long-standing allegations against Gautam Adani. He took a sharp dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi and alleged that Modi is protecting Adani, and is also involved in corruption. 

Yadav, the former chief minister of Bihar, was responding to queries from journalists here about Gandhi’s statement on the previous day, in the backdrop of charges of bribery and fraud against the Adani group in the US.

“Rahul Gandhi is right. Adani should be arrested,” said Prasad, who is an old ally of the Congress and a staunch opponent of the BJP, to which Adani is said to be close.

The RJD supremo, who incidentally has been convicted in several fodder scam cases and is on bail, was also asked about prospects of the INDIA bloc, of which his party is a part, in Jharkhand, where the counting of votes for assembly polls is scheduled on Saturday.

Speaking to PTI, the ailing septuagenarian replied, “I would like to remain focused on my statement that Adani must be arrested. I am not worried much about a new government (in Jharkhand) where we are already in power.” Jharkhand witnessed a straight battle between the INDIA bloc and the BJP-led NDA, which included the JD(U) headed by Nitish Kumar, Prasad’s arch-rival and the current Chief Minister of Bihar.

Addressing a press conference on Thursday, Gandhi further said that Chief Ministers have been jailed for scams of Rs 10-15 crore, but Adani, who has committed a scam of Rs 2000 crore is walking free.

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Cash for votes row: BJP leader Vinod Tawde sends legal notice to Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, asks them to apologise or face defamation

The BJP leader said the allegations against him were false, baseless and made with malafide intentions.

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Cash for votes row: BJP leader Vinod Tawde sends legal notice to Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, asks them to apologise or face defamation

BJP leader Vinod Tawde, accused of distributing cash to influence voters, has sent a legal notice to Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge, Supriya Shrinate and Rahul Gandhi over the controversy. The BJP leader has demanded their apologies or face a Rs 100-crore defamation case.

Vinod Tawde’s legal notice came after regional party Bahujan Vikas Aghadi (BVA) leader Hitendra Thakur on Tuesday accused him of distributing Rs 5 crore at a hotel in Virar in Palghar district, 60 km from Mumbai, to woo voters.

In the legal notice, the BJP leader said the allegations against him were false, baseless and made with malafide intentions. He claimed that he demanded an apology from the three Congress leaders for their remarks against him in the cash-for-votes row or he would be forced to initiate criminal proceedings against them.

Just a few hours before the Assembly Elections, a video went viral on Tuesday showing BVA workers storming into the hotel in Palghar during a meeting between Vinod Tawde and Rajan Naik, the BJP candidate from the Nalasopara seat. The BVA workers alleged that Tawde was caught red-handed with Rs 5 crore cash.

In the viral video, the BVA workers were seen taking out bundles of cash from a bag, while Tawde was sitting at a distance. The BVA workers also took pictures and videos of him on their phones. Amid these allegations, BVA leaders said that Rs 5 crore cash was distributed, an election official on Tuesday said Rs 9.93 lakh cash was recovered from the hotel rooms.

However, Vinod Tawde denied the allegation, saying he was only providing guidance to party workers on poll procedures and said he was not stupid enough to distribute money at his opponent’s hotel. Speaking to the media, he said that the Vivanta Hotel is owned by the Thakurs, and he is not stupid to go to their hotel and distribute money there.

The Police registered two FIRs against Tawde, BJP candidate Naik and others in connection with the controversy. Additionally, the Election Commission filed three FIRs against Tawde.

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3 dead, 9 hospitalised after gas leak at fertiliser plant in Maharashtra

According to police, the explosion released toxic chemical fumes.

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Three individuals, including two women, lost their lives and nine others were hospitalised following a gas leak caused by an explosion in a reactor at a fertiliser plant in Maharashtra’s Sangli district, an official said on Friday.

The incident occurred at approximately 6:30 PM on Thursday at the Myanmar Chemical Company, located in Shalgaon MIDC within Kadegaon tehsil.

Sangli Superintendent of Police Sandip Ghuge stated that the gas is suspected to be ammonia.

According to police, the explosion released toxic chemical fumes. “Approximately 12 people in the facility were affected and subsequently taken to the hospital. Tragically, two female workers and a security guard have died, while nine others are currently receiving treatment,” stated Sangram Shewale, Senior Inspector at Kadegaon police station.

Seven of the injured individuals have been admitted to Sahyadri Hospital in Karad, with five of them in critical condition in the ICU.

The deceased women have been identified as Suchita Uthale (50) from Yetgaon in Sangli district and Neelam Rethrekar (26) from Masur in Satara district, PTI reported.

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