Gujarat Massacres: court convicts figures close to Narendra Modi

August 30, 2013: A court in Ahmedabad has convicted 32 persons in the Naroda Patiya case, the largest massacre in 2002 during the Gujarat riots between Hindus and Muslims. Among the defendants, Maya Kodnani, a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP, the Hindu nationalist party) and former Minister of State, and Babu Bajrangi, a leader of the radical Hindu group Bajrang Dal. Both are close to Narendra Modi, (PICTURED) Chief Minister of Gujarat, blamed for the violence. For Fr. Cedric Prakash, director of the Jesuit human rights centre Prashant Ahmedabad the verdict "is the biggest victory of truth and justice" ever obtained by the victims of the massacre.

The two are convicted on two counts: criminal conspiracy (Section 120B of the Penal Code) and murder (Article 302). In the best case, they will be sentenced to life imprisonment. At worst, they will be awarded the death penalty.

Instigated by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP nationalist group affiliated to the BJP), February 28, 2002 a Hindu mob attacked the Muslim community in Naroda Patiya, a suburb of Ahmedabad, killing 95 people. The massacre came a day after the carnage of the Sabarmati Express, when a group of Muslims attacked and set fire to the train, which Hindus were travelling aboard returning from Ayodhya, the site of an ancient mosque taken over years ago by Hindus. The attack - which killed 58 people - also sparked violent sectarian riots across Gujarat, where the Islamic community paid the highest price.

In the face of the 32 convicted, the court acquitted 29 other defendants. However, according to Fr. Prakash, the verdict is "a triumph for the victims" and "the Indian judiciary," because it confirms "the ability of our judicial system to uphold truth and justice," two "non-negotiable values, however powerful the accused may be. "

As director of Prashant, that has always defended the cause of the victims of the massacres of Gujarat, the Jesuit said: "What happened today reflects everything that we believe in the center, and all the work done with these people. As the judgment was delivered, I saw people hugging each other and bursting into tears of joy. Our struggles were not in vain. "