New Delhi, November 13: The Supreme Court on Monday will hear the petition filed by 2002 Gujarat riots victim Zakia Jafri, challenging the "clean chit" given to Prime Minister Narendra Modi by the Special Investigation Team (SIT). The petitioner has alleged a "larger conspiracy", claiming that Modi, who was the then CM, turned a "blind eye" to the violence perpetrated in Gulbarg Society of Ahmedabad.

Zakia, 80, had lost her husband and former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri in the riots. The senior politician, who resided in Gulbarga society, was dragged out of his house, hacked and burnt to death by the arsonists. 68 others, belonging to the Muslim community, were killed in the residential colony on February 28, 2002. Gujarat Riots: Out of 23, Four Acquitted by Gujarat High Court in Godhra Case.

According to Zakia, her husband had dialled top police officers, as well as the politicians, when a mob of Hindutva rioters had rallied outside his home. His calls, however, remained unanswered.

The Gujarat High Court had last year rejected the petition filed Zakia and NGO NGO Citizen for Justice and Peace, run by Teesta Setalvad, which had sought a criminal trial. The court had also questioned the timing of the plea, asking why it took her four years to seek judicial remedy.

Notably, the SIT report which cleared Modi's role in the post-Godhra carnage, was submitted in 2012.

The communal riots in Gujarat had claimed over 3,000 lives and left over 20,000 displaced. The violence was triggered after coaches of the Sabarmati Express, carrying mostly Ayodhya kar sevaks, was torched leading to the death of 59 people.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 13, 2018 04:07 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).