22 accused of Gujarat riots acquitted for lack of evidence: 17 people including 2 children were accused of killing and burning dead bodies

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A Gujarat court on Tuesday acquitted all 22 accused in a 2002 Godhra riots case. He was accused of killing 17 people including two children, burning their dead bodies and inciting riots. This massacre took place in Halol of Panchmahal. In which the police had made 22 people accused, out of which 8 accused have died during the hearing of the case itself.

Gopalsinh Solanki, the counsel for the accused in the case, said that the bench of Justice Harsh Trivedi has acquitted all the 22 accused. The Sessions Court declared everyone innocent due to lack of evidence. The case was heard in a court in Halol town.

The accused burnt the dead bodies to destroy the evidence.
The counsel for the aggrieved party said in the court that on February 28, 2002, 17 people were murdered in Halol of Panchmahal district, in which two children were also present. After this, the accused also burnt the dead bodies with the intention of destroying the evidence. The massacre was carried out on 27 February 2002, a day after a bogie of the Sabarmati Express was set on fire.

After this massacre, the police registered a case under sections related to murder and rioting. In 2004, another police inspector registered a fresh case and arrested 22 people for their involvement in the riots.

The witnesses in the case also turned hostile
Solanki, the counsel for the accused, said that the prosecution could not gather evidence against the accused. Even his witnesses had turned hostile. Defense counsel said the bodies of the victims were never found. The police had recovered some bones from the bank of a river. However, it could not be proved that the bones belonged to the victims.

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