Gujarat riot: Nanavati Commission gives clean chit to PM Modi

Gandhinagar, Dec 11 (HS): Two member Commission which probed post-Godhra riots has given clean chit to the then Gujarat CM Narendra Modi and three others. The report of the Judicial Commission of Justice Nanavati and Justice Mehta was submitted in Gujarat Vidhan Sabha today. The report was tabled in assembly today. It was submitted to the Gujarat government in 2014 November.

The three others are Haren Pandya, the then Gujarat Home Minister, Ashok Bhatt, the then Gujarat Minister (now he is no more) and Bharat Barot, the then Gujarat Minister.

State Home Minister Pradeep Singh said that the commission has given a clean chit to the then Chief Minister Narendra Modi. The Commission said in its report that the role of the ministers Haren Pandya, Bharat Barot, and Ashok Bhatt is not clear. The report questions the role of Arabi Sreekumar, Rahul Sharma and Sanjeev Bhatt.

Home Minister Pradeep Singh said, ‘Narendra Modi was accused that he had gone to Godhra without any knowledge. The commission has dismissed this charge. All government agencies were aware of this. It was alleged that the postmortem of bodies of all 59 Kar-sevakas was done at Godhra railway station itself. On this, the Commission said that the post-mortem was done not by the orders of the Chief Minister but by the orders of the officers.

According to the report, Narendra Modi as Chief Minister went to Godhra without any knowledge. Postmortem of all the 59 Karsevak’s bodies was done at Godhra station. The Commission said that the post-mortem was done on the orders of the officers present there and not on the orders of the Chief Minister. Sanjeev Bhatt had alleged that Hindus should be allowed to vent their anger, the Commission said that no such orders were given through the Chief Minister in this meeting. The government did not announce any bandh.