Former Gujarat minister and BJP leader Maya Kodnani and the Bajrang Dal's Babu Bajrangi are among over 60 accused who have been acquitted in the Naroda Gam case during the 2002 Gujarat riots.
A special court in Ahmedabad gave its judgment on Thursday in the communal riots case in which 11 Muslims were killed when their homes were set on fire in Ahmedabad's Naroda Gam.
Samshad Pathan, the lawyer of the victims, told NDTV they will challenge the acquittal in the Gujarat High Court.
"This verdict is not just against the victims, but against the SIT (special investigation team) which did its work properly and charged 86 accused. This verdict is against the Supreme Court. The victims will get justice even if over 20 years have passed," Mr Pathan told NDTV, referring to the SIT formed by the Supreme Court.
The lawyer said they don't know on what basis the special court acquitted all the accused, adding they are waiting for a copy of the order. "We had all the evidence against the accused. From FSL (foreign science laboratory) reports to cell tower location to eyewitnesses," Mr Pathan said.
Home Minister Amit Shah appeared in court as a defence witness for Ms Kodnani in 2017. She was a minister in the Gujarat government headed by the then Chief Minister Narendra Modi in 2002, when the riots broke out following the burning of a coach of the Sabarmati Express in which Hindu pilgrims were travelling in Gujarat's Godhra.
"All the accused have been acquitted. We are waiting for a copy of the judgement," the lawyer of those who have been acquitted told reporters outside the special court of SK Baxi today.
Ms Kodnani was also convicted in the Naroda Patiya riots case in which 97 people were massacred and was sentenced to 28 years. She was later discharged by the Gujarat High Court.
The massacre at Naroda Gam was one of the nine major 2002 communal riots cases investigated by the SIT appointed by the Supreme Court and heard by special courts.
Over 80 people were named as accused in the Naroda Gam case; 18 died during trial.
The acquittal comes as a setback for the families of those who died in the Naroda Gam massacre.
The latest acquittal is likely to raise a big political storm, especially after 11 men convicted in the Bilkis Bano gang-rape case were given remission just before the Gujarat election last year in November. Seven members of her family, including her three-year-old daughter, were also murdered in the 2002 Gujarat riots.
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