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Court pulls up Modi on FIR against activist

AHMEDABAD - The Supreme Court on Tuesday censured the Gujarat government for filing a ‘100 per cent frivolous’ case against social activist Teesta Setalvad in connection with the digging of graves of victims of the 2002 communal riots near Lunawada town in central Panchmahal district in 2005.

“This is a hundred per cent frivolous case to victimise the petitioner (Setalvad). This type of case does no credit to the state of Gujarat in any way”, observed Justice Aftab Alam and asked senior advocate Pradeep Ghosh, who appeared for the Gujarat government, to go through the First Information Report (FIR) of the case and advise his client not to proceed with it.

The court was hearing a petition by Setalvad against the May 27 order of the Gujarat High Court, which had refused to quash the FIR registered against her at a police station in Panchmahal district.

While posting the matter for March 23, the apex court said its interim stay, imposed on July 29, 2011 on criminal proceedings against Setalvad in the case would continue till then.

The state government had in its affidavit justified its probe against Setalvad in the case saying she actually planned and executed the digging of the graves without any permission in 2006.

It had also claimed that its probe had revealed that Setalvad was the main accused, who actually planned and executed this operation of digging of graves through her staff, pointing out that the other accused had claimed innocence and had blamed Setalvad for instigating them to carry out the exhumation, a penal offence.

mahesh@khaleejtimes.com