BJP for probe into role of NGOs in Gujarat

Zaheera Sheikh's move to resile her testimony in the Best Bakery case has brought out the knives in the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as well as the Gujarat government.

A day after Sheikh said she had been under pressure from activist Teesta Setalvad to identify BJP legislator Madhu Shrivastava as the perpetrator behind the Best Bakery massacre in 2002, the BJP asked for an "examination of the realtionship between such witnesses and the non-government organisation."

According to party general secretary Arun Jaitley, the party while refusing to comment on the legal aspects of the case would question the debate on the Zaheera Sheikh issue.

"Two questions arise out of this situation. First deals with the relationship between NGOs and such witnesses and whether such intervention by organisations is necessary and the second is that a lesson should be learnt that grave allegation should not be levied after hearing such testimonies," said Jaitley.

According to Jaitley, even in the Ishrat Jehan encounter case allegations were levelled against the Gujarat government despite the fact that it was proved that Jehan had links with terrorist organisations.

"In the Zaheera Sheikh case, there was an expression of no-confidence in the judiciary of an entire state," he added.

He said "political organisations and institutions should wait for the judicial process in one court to be over before taking as gospel truth such testimonies."

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi, whose government's probity took a beating over the case also asked for a serious look into the role of NGOs.

"The role of NGOs in such situations should be looked at seriously. The country, its citizens and the Constitution needs to look at such institutions with seriousness," he said.

Teesta Setalvad, the activist in the eye of the storm, said the important statement was what Zaheera Sheikh would say in court and not what she said in front of television cameras.

After the resiling of Zaheera Sheikh's testimony, the Best Bakery case has become extremely weak and hopes of conviction are also fading. The Gujarat government, by making these statements is trying to claim a moral victory.