Indian court acquits 69 Hindus of killing Muslims during deadly 2002 sectarian riots
An Indian court has acquitted 69 Hindus, including a former minister, of the murder of 11 Muslims during devastating communal riots in the western state of Gujarat in 2002.
Those acquitted include Maya Kodnani, a former minister from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), former Bajrang Dal leader Babu Bajrangi, and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) leader Jaydeep Patel.
Bajrang Dal and VHP are Hindu nationalist groups and have close links to the BJP.
Kodnani was also accused in a case in which 97 people were killed in the 2002 riots. She was convicted but later acquitted by a higher court.
At least 1,000 people, mostly Muslims, were killed across Gujarat in the 2002 riots. Activists put the toll at over twice that number.
The killings occurred in Ahmedabad on Feb. 28, 2002, a day after a train carrying Hindu pilgrims was set on fire, setting off one of independent India's worst outbreaks of religious bloodshed.
A total of 86 Hindus were accused of the killings in the Naroda Gam district of Ahmedabad, 17 of whom died during the trial. All the accused were free on bail.
“We have been saying from the first day that they were framed," defense lawyer Chetan Shah, who represented 82 of the accused, said. "Some of the accused were not present at the scene on the day of the incident."
Shamshad Pathan, who represented the victims, said they would challenge the court's decision in a higher court. “Justice has eluded the victims once again. We will study the grounds on which the court has acquitted the accused persons."
Critics accused Premier Modi, who was chief minister at the time, of failing to protect Muslims. Modi denied the allegations.
The BJP government stands accused at federal and state levels of discriminating against religious minorities.
Observers say anti-Muslim rhetoric has flared more aggressively since the BJP came to power in 2014. Critics say the BJP is downgrading the contributions of Muslims to Indian history and society.
Reports suggest that the Indian government has in recent years adopted various laws and policies that are discriminatory against the country's minorities.
The ruling party is also accused of infiltrating the country's police and courts, empowering Hindu nationalists to threaten, harass, and attack religious minorities with impunity and crack down on any dissent.
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