Teesta cheated Godhra 2002 riots victims: Guj police tells HC

Teesta and Javed had said they were implicated in the case and were victims of political vendetta

Opposing the petition filed by social activist Teesta Setalvad and her husband seeking quashing of an FIR against them for alleged misappropriation of funds, Gujarat police today told Bombay High Court that the duo had cheated victims of 2002 Godhra riots and "embezzled funds" collected in their name.

This was stated in an affidavit filed by the Cyber Crime Cell, Ahmedabad Crime Branch in response to Teesta and her husband Javed Anand's petition seeking quashing of the FIR lodged in Gujarat and challenging the police's move of freezing their and their trusts' bank accounts operated from Mumbai.

Teesta and Javed had said that they were implicated in the case and were victims of political vendetta. They claimed that they were being targeted by the "perpetrators of the riots."

The affidavit was submitted today before a division bench headed by Justice N H Patil which posted the matter for hearing on March 20.

One of the riot victims from Gulbarg housing society, which was burnt during the 2002 Godhra riots, had lodged a complaint with the Ahmedabad police against Teesta, Anand and the NGOs run by them - Citizens for Justice and Peace and Sabrang Trust.

According to the complaint, the accused persons had allegedly collected funds in the name of converting part of the Gulbarg society into a museum and had allegedly misappropriated funds worth Rs 1.51 crores.

The Gujarat police in its affidavit said the accused persons (Teesta and Javed) in the name of promoting communal harmony collected huge amount of foreign funds and cheated the complainant and several others.