Home Page

  Communalism Combat

  India Rights & Wrongs

  Khoj

  Aman

 

Subscribe for daily media monitor:   
Subscribe 
Unsubscribe  

 

  Feedback

 

  Action Alerts

 

  Campaigns

 

  Resources for

  Secularism

 

  About us

 

  Contact Us

 

  Sabrang Team

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


 

June 30, 2003

                                                      IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

UNDER ORDER XVI RULE 4(1) (A)
CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION
SPECIAL LEAVE PETITION

(Under Article 136 of the Constitution of India)

CRL.M.P. ______ of  2003

IN

 

SPECIAL LEAVE PETITON  (CRIMINAL) NO.           OF 2003

(Against the final order and judgment dated 27th June, 2003 passed by the Addl. Sessions Judge, Fast Court No.1, Vadodara in Sessions Case No. 248 of 2002)

 

IN THE MATTER OF:

Citizens for Justice & Peace & Ors.                                                    Petitioners

Versus

State of Gujarat                                                                                                     Respondents

 

 

APPLICATION FOR PROTECTION

 

TO:

THE HON'BLE THE CHIEF JUSTICE 

AND HIS OTHER COMPANION JUSTICES OF

THE HON'BLE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA:

 

THE HUMBLE PETITION OF THE  

PETITONERS ABOVENAMED

MOST RESPECTFULLY SHEWETH:

 

1.                    The Petitioners are filing the above Special Leave Petition under Article 136 of the Constitution of India being aggrieved by the impugned final order and judgment dated 27th June 2003 passed by the Addl. Sessions Judge, Fast Court No.1, Vadodara in Sessions Case No. 248 of 2002. The facts and circumstances leading to the filing of he present petition are not repeated herein for the sake of brevity and the petitioners seeks to refer to and rely upon the same at the time of hearing the present application.

 

2.                    The petition is filed concerning the BEST Bakery judgement. One of the central grounds of appeal is that important witnesses were threatened into tuning hostile in Court. In the companion petition filed by the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) this Honourable Court has already directed that witnesses in 9 cases be provided with police protection.

 

3.                    The present application is in respect of three individuals for a similar protection. These three individuals are not direct witnesses in the BEST Bakery cases but are closely linked  and connected with the case and have been receiving intensified threats especially in the last few days.

 

4.                     The application is in respect of Smt Teesta Setalvad, Secretray Citizens for Justice and Peace who is petitioner no 2 in the present case, Shri Suhel Tirmizi who is an advocate practicing in the Gujarat High Court and closely connected with interacting with the witnesses in the BEST Bakery Case. The third person is Shri Raees Khan Azeezkhan Pathan who is a full time co-ordinator of Petitioner No 1, the Citizens for Justice and Peace based in Ahmedabad who has been instrumental, following interactions that petitioner No 2,  Teesta Setalvad has with the prime witness in the BEST Bakery trial and her family, in getting the family out of Vadodara, Gujarat. Both Smt Teesta Setalvad and Shri Raees Khan Azeezkhan Pathan have been directly involved in providing protection and rehabilitation to the family in Mumbai where they now reside. It has not been safe for the witness and her family, who received threats during the course of the trial that forced her to turn hostile to remain in Vadodara and appeal for justice and fair trial and Smt Teesta Setalvad and Shri Raees Khan Azeezkhan Pathan on behalf of Petitioner No 1 whom they represent have played key roles in assuring them safety and succour. In fact, the prime winess statement before the NHRC on July 11, 2003 was recorded officially in the presence of Smt Teesta Setalvad in New Delhi.

 

5.                     The threats received by all three individuals have in essence been received by Petitioner No 2, Smt Teesta Setalvad on her mobile threatening in filthy kanguage dire consequences if legal aid and work related to the BESt Bakery case is not stopped forthwith. Mr Raees Khan who lives at 32, First Floor, Opposite Vishwa Bharati High School, Shahpur Mill Compound, Shahpur, Ahmedabad 380000 has received threats on the phone and in person also regarding his active role in the BEST Bakery Case. Mr Raees Khan Azeezkhan Pathan  was also physically surrounded and threatened by a mob of over 100 persons belonging to the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal on the premises of the Shah-Nanavaty Commission in Ahmedabad on Friday, August 29, 2003 as he was escorting some witnesses in the Gulberg society massacre to the premises.

 

6.                     Even prior to the involvement of these three individuals in the BEST Bakery case, because of their active involvement in extending legal aid and rehabilitation to the victims of the Gujarat carnage, they have been receiving intermittent threats. However after their open involvement in the BEST Bakery case, the threats have intensified and increased considerably. On April 25, 2003, Mr Suhel Tirmizi and Mr Raees Khan Azeezkhan Pathan had filed a formal application requesting police protection in relation to the earlier threats.

 

7.                     However with relation to the intensified threats to all three individuals, Smt Teesta Setalvad, Shri Suhel Tirmizi and Shri raees Khan, in the last fortnight, all 3 individuals have filed another more urgent formal application for urgent police protection on August 20, 2003. Copies of these are Annexed as Annexure 1 toi theis Application.

 

8.                     Following this, the Inspector in Charge of the Shahpur Police Station, Ahmedabad, PI Kanani (who was the Investigtaing Officer with relation to the BEST Bakery trial from March 10, 2002 in Vadodara) contacted Mr Raees Khan Azeezkhan Pathan in order to record his statement vis a vis police protection. This was done and a statement recorded in Gujarati at the Shahpur Police Station on August 21, 2003 between 8-10.30 p.m. in the presence of advocate Shri Suhel Tirmizi.

 

9.                     In the statement, Shri Raees Khan has given details of the threats issued to him and again asked urgently for police protection. However till date no protection however has been provided to any of the 3 persons, Smt Teesta Setalvad. Shri Suhel Tirmizi and Shri Raees Khan Azeezkhan Pathan.

10.                  The said persons have a genuine and bonafide apprehension that because of their involvement in the BEST Bakery case—the outcome of which is today so critical for the entire justice process related to the Gujarat carnage—their lives are in danger and urgent reliefs are therefore requested. The three individuals further emphasise that their involvement in the Gujarat carnage related reportage, investigation, legal aid and relief have been from the start. (Smt Teesta Setalvad is the author of Genocidfe—Gujarat 2002 and Convenor of the Concerned Citizens Tribunal –Crimes Against Humanity, November 21, 2002 headed by Justice VR Krishna Iyer). They have at no stage made a frivolous request for police protection but under the circumstances related to the BEST Bakery case seriously apprehend  a threat to their lives.

 

PRAYER:

In the facts and circumstances stated herein above it is Most Respectfully prayed that this Hon’ble Court may be pleased to:

 

a)      The Director General of Police and Secretary, Home Affairs, State of Gujarat be directed to provide immediate and armed police protection to Smt Teesta Setalvad, Shri Suhel Tirmizi and Shri Raees Khan Azzezkhan Pathan across the state of Gujarat.

a)       Pass any such further or other order(s) as this Hon’ble Court may deem fit and proper in the facts and circumstances of the case.

AND FOR THIS ACT OF KINDNESS THE APPLICANT/PETITIONER AS IN DUTY BOUND SHALL EVER PRAY

 

APARNA BHAT

COUNSEL FOR THE PETITIONERS

DATED:

 

 

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

 

UNDER ORDER XVI RULE 4(1) (A)

CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

SPECIAL LEAVE PETITION

 

(Under Article 136 of the Constitution of India)

CRL.M.P. ______ of  2003

IN

 

SPECIAL LEAVE PETITON  (CRIMINAL) NO.           OF 2003

(Against the final order and judgment dated 27th June, 2003 passed by the Addl. Sessions Judge, Fast Court No.1, Vadodara in Sessions Case No. 248 of 2002)

 

IN THE MATTER OF:

Citizens for Justice & Peace & Ors.                                                    Petitioners

Versus

State of Gujarat                                                                                                     Respondents

 

 

 

 

APPLICATION FOR PROTECTION

 

 

 

CRL.M.P. NO.                OF 2003: AN APPLICATION PROTECTION

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

COUNSEL FOR THE APPLICANT: APARNA BHAT

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

INDEX

 

SL.NO.                              PARTICULARS                                                  PAGE NO.                                   

 

 

 

1.       An application for placing protection for Three Individuals  Involved in Legal Aid for BEST Bakery Prime Witnesses

2.       Annexure 1 of Letter for Police Protection to Commissioner of Police Ahmedabad, Chief Secretary, Gujarat and Director General of Police, Gujarat dated August 20. 2003

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

 

UNDER ORDER XVI RULE 4(1) (A)

CRIMINAL APPELLATE JURISDICTION

SPECIAL LEAVE PETITION

 

(Under Article 136 of the Constitution of India)

CRL.M.P. ______ of  2003

IN

 

SPECIAL LEAVE PETITON  (CRIMINAL) NO.           OF 2003

(Against the final order and judgment dated 27th June, 2003 passed by the Addl. Sessions Judge, Fast Court No.1, Vadodara in Sessions Case No. 248 of 2002)

 

IN THE MATTER OF:

Citizens for Justice & Peace & Ors.                                       Petitioners

Versus

State of Gujarat                                                                         Respondents

 

AFFIDAVIT

 

I, Teesta Setalvad, daughter of Atul Motilal Setalvad, aged 41 years, resident of Nirant Juhu Tara Road Mumbai 400 049, the petitioner no. 2 in the present petition, presently at New Delhi,solemnly state and affirm as under:

 

1.                   That I am the petitioner no. 2 in the abovementioned matter and am fully conversant with the facts and circumstances of the matter and in that capacity am competent to swear and despose as under:

2.                   That I have gone though and fully understood the facts and circumstances stated in the accompanying application and state that they are true and correct to the best of my knowledge.

3.                   That the annexures are true copies of their originals.

 

 

DEPONENT

 

 

 

 

VERFICATION:

 

Verified at New Delhi on this 1st day of September 2003 that the contents of the above affidavit are true and correct to the best of my knowledge and nothing material has been concealed therefrom.

 

 

DEPONENT

 

 

TOP

Sabrang Communications & Publishing Pvt. Ltd.