Gujarat riots: Zakia Jafri seeks hearing after polls on plea against clean chit to Modi, SC agrees
New Delhi : Zakia Jafri, wife of slain MP Ehsan Jafri, told the Supreme Court Monday that her plea challenging SIT's clean chit to Narendra Modi, the then Chief Minister of Gujarat, in the 2002 post-Godhra riots be heard after the Lok Sabha polls.
There is "no urgency in the matter" and it can be heard in July after the general election, she told the top court.
A bench of Justices A M Khanwilkar and Ajay Rastogi considered the submission for deferment by senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Jafri and listed the matter for hearing in July.
"At the request of senior advocate Kapil Sibal, for the petitioners, hearing is deferred. List on a non-miscellaneous day in July, 2019, as requested," the bench said.
At the outset, senior advocate Sibal said, "There is no urgency in the matter. It can be heard any time. Let it be heard after the elections".
The bench said it is up to the petitioner.
Jafri who filed the petition in 2018, challenging the Gujarat High Court's October 5, 2017 order rejecting her plea against the SIT decision, had never made any such submission for deferring the hearing on the plea.
Ehsan Jafri, an ex-MP, was among the 68 people killed at Gulberg Society on February 28, 2002, a day after the S-6 Coach of the Sabarmati Express was burnt at Godhra killing 59 people and triggering riots in Gujarat.
The court had previously said it will also look into the application by social activist Teesta Setalvad on becoming a co-petitioner in Zakia's plea ahead of hearing the main case.
Jafri's counsel had told the apex court that a notice needs to be issued in the plea as it pertains to alleged "larger conspiracy" during February 27, 2002 and May 2002.
The plea had also maintained that after the SIT gave a clean chit in its closure report before a trial judge, the petitioner filed a protest which was dismissed by the magistrate without considering "substantiated merits".
The plea, filed through advocate Aparna Bhat, has said the high court "failed to appreciate" the petitioner's complaint which was independent of the Gulberg case registered at Meghaninagar Police Station.
On February 8, 2012, the Special Investigation Team filed a closure report giving a clean chit to Modi and 63 others, including senior government officials, saying there was "no prosecutable evidence" against them.
The high court in its October 5, 2017, order said the SIT probe was monitored by the Supreme Court. However, it partly allowed Zakia's petition as far as its demand of a further investigation was concerned.
It said the petitioner can approach an appropriate forum, including the magistrate's court, a division bench of the high court or the Supreme Court seeking further investigation.
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'He is in a happy place now': Harish Rana's last rites conducted, family to donate his organs
Ghaziabad (UP) (PTI): Don't cry, he is in a happy place now, the parents of Harish Rana, the first person in India to be permitted passive euthanasia, said on Wednesday as they bid farewell to their son one last time.
Harish's last rites were conducted at the Green Park cremation ground in South Delhi on Wednesday morning, marking a quiet end to his 13-year ordeal.
In a final act of generosity, Harish's family consented to donate five of his organs.
The 31-year-old man passed away on Tuesday after slipping into a coma in 2013, following a fall from a fourth-floor balcony while he was a B.Tech student at Panjab University.
During the last rites, Harish's mother bid an emotional farewell to her son with folded hands and met those present, while his father Ashok Rana urged mourners not to cry, a neighbour told PTI over the phone.
Residents who attended the cremation described the atmosphere as deeply emotional. Tejas Chaturvedi, a resident of the Raj Empire Society, noted that many attendees were moved to tears during the ceremony. However, Ashok Rana continued to console others and encouraged them to remain strong in their moment of grief.
"Let no one weep. I am praying that my son may depart in peace. Wherever he is born next, may he receive God's blessings," he said.
Uttar Pradesh Congress chief Ajai Rai, who visited the cremation ground to pay his respects, told PTI that the family had confirmed donation of five of Harish's organs. "Harish might be gone, but he will continue to live on through the beneficiaries of his organ donation. The family has set an example before the entire nation," Rai told PTI over the phone.
Family members, along with representatives of the Brahma Kumaris, a spiritual movement led by women, attended the cremation to offer their prayers for Harish. Residents from the Raj Empire Society in Ghaziabad, where the Rana family lives, also came to show their support, joining a diverse group of NGOs, AIIMS staff, relatives, and friends.
Harish's body was transported to the cremation ground in an ambulance, and the platform was covered in rose petals. Many mourners paid their last respects with folded hands, and some placed saffron garlands on the body before it was laid upon the pyre. Ashish Rana, Harish's younger brother, lit the pyre, accompanied by his sister, Bhavna.
Sister Lovely of the Brahma Kumaris, who has been associated with the family and travelled to the cremation ground, said that meditative chants were performed during the last rites. "The body is leaving the mortal world, but the soul is immortal and has begun a new journey," she said.
"The family decided to donate Harish's eyes," Sister Lovely told PTI.
Additionally, Sister Lovely shared that a 'bhog' (offering) and prayer ritual will be held by the Brahma Kumaris in the coming days, where food items that Harish enjoyed will be prepared. "Harish could not eat for over a decade. Now the soul is free. In a symbolic gesture, we will offer the food that his body loved," she said.
Earlier, neighbours and well-wishers spoke of the family's unwavering commitment to caring for Harish despite the emotional and financial challenges they faced over the years. His parents, Ashok Rana and Nirmala Devi, described the decision to allow passive euthanasia as "extremely painful but necessary."
According to sources, the family is scheduled to return to their Ghaziabad residence after completing the last rites and related rituals.
Harish was shifted to the palliative care unit at AIIMS Delhi earlier this month from his Ghaziabad home following a landmark Supreme Court order permitting the withdrawal of life support for him. He passed away on Tuesday.
The apex court had clarified that passive euthanasia in his case would involve withdrawal of artificial nutrition, such as the feeding tube, while continuing palliative care to allow a natural death with dignity. Medical boards had concluded that his condition was irreversible.
