3 women named in Deepda Darwaza case

Three women have been named in the Deepda Darwaza case of the 2002 riots. Shabbirmiyan Sindhi,the key witness in the case has identified three housewives known to him in his erstwhile neighbourhood...

Three women have been named in the Deepda Darwaza case of the 2002 riots. Shabbirmiyan Sindhi,the key witness in the case has identified three housewives known to him in his erstwhile neighbourhood and who had allegedly supplied kerosene and petrol to the mob to burn those hacked to death in Visnagar.

The women have been identified as Gita Babulal Patel,Madhu Ajitkumar Patel and Manjula Ramesh Patel all housewives aged between 40 and 45 years.

A total of 14 people,including five children,were hacked to death and burnt in their houses at Deepda Darwaza in Visnagar taluka of Mehsana in 2002. P R Agrawal,special public prosecutor,said: These women provided the mob with kerosene and petrol and asked them to burn the body parts. The women are close relatives of the men accused in the case. They all stay in the same area.

Story continues below this ad

The three were arrested earlier but are out on bail at present.

This is not the first time that women have been accused in the communal killings. Earlier,a woman named Geeta Rathod was accused of supplying kerosene and kerosene-soaked rags to the mob that burnt several Naroda Patiya residents on February 28,2002. She was arrested by the SIT and later released on bail.

Also,former state minister and BJP legislator Maya Kodnani is accused of abetting rioters in the Naroda gam case.

Stay updated with the latest - Click here to follow us on Instagram