SC pulls up NGO headed by Setalvad

The Supreme Court has rebuked an NGO run by activist Teesta Setalvad for bringing up the Godhra riot case with an international body, saying “we can’t allow an international body to interfere with what is happening in our courts”.

The Supreme Court has rebuked an NGO run by activist Teesta Setalvad for bringing up the Godhra riot case with an international body, saying “we can’t allow an international body to interfere with what is happening in our courts”.

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The NGO, Centre for Justice and Peace, forwarded its letter to the Special Investigating Team (SIT) on protection of witnesses to the Geneva-based office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, which is associated with the UN.

“It is our matter. What do you have to do with the international body?” a special bench headed by Justice DK Jain said.

The issue was brought up by senior advocate Harish Salve, who is assisting the court as an amicus curiae in the Gujarat riot cases. He said sending a copy of the letter to an international body was “uncalled for”.

The NGO’s counsel said it was only for witness protection, to which the bench snapped “from Switzerland they will provide protection to witnesses?”

The court was told that the SIT had completed its inquiry into allegations of the wife of former Congress MP Zakia Jaffry that CM Narendra Modi and his aides aided and abetted the carnage in which Zakia was killed.