Zakia Jafri's appeal: SC condones delay of 216 days in filing plea against HC verdict

The Supreme Court on Friday condoned the delay of 216 days in filing of a petition against the October 2017 judgement of the Gujarat High Court, which had rejected Zakia Jafri's plea against the Special Investigation Team's (SIT) clean chit to then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi.

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday condoned the delay of 216 days in filing of a petition against the October 2017 judgement of the Gujarat High Court, which had rejected Zakia Jafri's plea against the Special Investigation Team's (SIT) clean chit to then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and 63 others in the 2002 riots, keeping in mind the subject matter involved.

The apex court, however, observed that the explanation offered in the application for condonation of delay was blissfully vague and bereft of any material facts and particulars. There is a delay of 216 days in filing of this special leave petition against the judgement and order dated October 5, 2017, passed by the High Court of Gujarat. Even though the explanation offered in the application for condonation of delay is blissfully vague and bereft of any material facts and particulars, keeping in mind the subject matter involved, we deemed it appropriate to ignore/condone the delay and proceeded to hear the matter on merits, said a bench comprising Justices A M Khanwilkar, Dinesh Maheshwari and C T Ravikumar.

The bench, which dismissed the plea by slain Congress leader Ehsan Jafri's wife Zakia Jafri, who had alleged a larger conspiracy during the 2002 violence and had challenged the high court verdict, also noted that the state of Gujarat and the Special Investigation Team (SIT) had faintly objected to the hearing of the matter on merits owing to unexplained delay in filing of the petition. It said the respondents also had a serious objection to the joining of activist Teesta Setalvad as petitioner number two, firstly because the protest petition on which the impugned order was passed and assailed in the appeal, was filed only by Zakia Jafri.

The bench noted that according to Setalvad, she is a bonafide crusader of human rights issues and has been following this case closely being fully convinced about the cause in quest of justice. However, the bench said, "we have leaned in favour of examining the merits of the challenge to the impugned order(s) at the instance of the appellant - Zakia Ahsan Jafri. The bench observed that it does not wish to dilate on the issue of locus of Setalvad and keep that preliminary objection open to be decided in an appropriate case. In that light, we have granted leave to appeal and decided to examine the matter on merits at the instance of the appellant Zakia Ahsan Jafri, it said.

Congress leader and former MP Ehsan Jafri was among the 68 people killed at Ahmedabad's Gulberg Society during violence on February 28, 2002, a day after the Godhra train burning that claimed 59 lives. (PTI)