Mahima
The Supreme Court said that it would not consider any appeal for adjournment to a later date in response to the plea of Zakia Jafri, wife of late MP Ehsan Jafri, against the SIT’s clean chit granted to the then Chief Minister of Gujarat, Narendra Modi in the Gujarat Riot Case. The case hearing is scheduled for later..
The bench headed by Justice AM Khanwilkar comprising Dinesh Maheshwari and Krishna Murari has also maintained that any further request of adjournment would not be entertained.
Kapil Sibbal moved the letter of adjournment of hearing for later on the ground that many advocates are busy with the ongoing Maratha reservation case.
However, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta representing the Gujarat Government and senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi representing the Special Investigation Team opposed the letter. Previously the date of hearing was fixed by the Supreme Court. But it has been adjourned numerous times by now.
Zakia Jafri’s lawyer had previously urged the Supreme Court that a notice must be given in the plea because it relates to an alleged “larger conspiracy”.
Following the closure report filed by the SIT giving clean chit to Narendra Modi and other senior government officials on the basis of lack of any prosecutable evidence, Zakia Jafri filed a plea against the decision of SIT which was rejected by the Gujarat High Court.
The Supreme Court was monitoring the SIT investigation, according to the High court’s order. It did, however, partially grant Zakia Jafri’s petition in terms of her demand for a new investigation. It claimed that the petitioner may seek further inquiry from any other forum, including a magistrate’s court, a division bench of the high court, or the Supreme Court. Zakia Jafri had filed a petition in the Supreme Court, challenging the Gujarat High Court’s order dismissing her appeal of the SIT’s decision which is now scheduled for hearing at a later date.
