The Supreme Court on Thursday granted bail to Bajrang Dal leader Babu Bajrangi who was convicted in the 2002 Naroda Patiya riots case, ANI reported. The court granted him bail on health grounds.
The Bajrang Dal leader was sentenced to 21 years in jail in the case. At least 97 Muslims were killed in Ahmedabad’s Naroda Patiya area on February 28, 2002, when a mob comprising thousands of people descended upon the locality and murdered them. The incident was one of the worst cases of mob violence during the Gujarat riots.
In October, the Supreme Court had sought a response from the Gujarat Police on Bajrangi’s bail plea. Bajrangi had told the court he is in “unsound physical condition” and underwent a bypass surgery recently.
In April 2018, the Gujarat High Court had acquitted former Bharatiya Janata Party minister Maya Kodnani, who had been convicted in the case and sentenced to 28 years in jail. It upheld the conviction of 12 of the 29 people who had filed appeals and acquitted the remaining 17.
In January, the top court had granted bail to four convicts identified as Umeshbhai Bharwad, Rajkumar, Harshad, and Prakashbhai Rathod in the case.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!