The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a petition by activist Teesta Setalvad and her husband Javed Anand in a case lodged against them for allegedly misappropriating funds received by her NGOs for the victims of the 2002 Gujarat riots, Live Law reported.

The couple had challenged a Gujarat High Court order that had rejected their plea to unfreeze their personal bank accounts as well as those connected to their NGOs. The Supreme Court had reserved its verdict in July.

Setalvad and her NGOs Sabrang Trust and Mumbai-based Citizens for Justice and Peace are accused of allegedly embezzling funds collected through donations to construct a memorial for the communal riots in Ahmedabad’s Gulberg Society. Their bank accounts had been frozen.

During the hearing in July, the counsel for the Gujarat government, Tushar Mehta, had told the Supreme Court that Setalvad siphoned off the NGOs’ funds – meant for spreading secular education – for personal purposes, including liquor consumption. After Setalvad argued that the state was trying to paralyse her activities, Mehta claimed that the couple had withdrawn and siphoned off crores after learning that their accounts were going to be frozen.