TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter
A division bench of Allahabad High Court, comprised of Justice Ramesh Sinha and Justice UC Srivastava, has summoned Uttar Pradesh Chief secretary in connection to 2007 Gorakhpur communal riot case.
It is the case in which the then Gorakhpur MP and current Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Yogi Adityanath is listed as one of the accused.
The bench has directed the Chief Secretary, Uttar Pradesh to appear before the court, in person and file a affidavit with all the relevant documents related to 2007 riots, as well as documents relating to the grant of prosecution sanction under Section 153A of IPC.
The order came after the hearing on a petition filed by social activists Pervez Parvaz and Asad Hayat.
In January 2007, tension escalated between Hindu and Muslim communities of Gorakhpur before the Muharram procession. Gorakhpur MP Yogi Adityanath sat on dharna with members of Hindu Yuva Vahini. On the night of January 7, 2007 Yogi Adityanath had delivered an inflammatory speech on the Gorakhpur railway station in the presence of member assembly Radhe Mohan Das and Mayor Anju Chaudhary. He had said that he would not let Muslims raise the Tazia and play Holi with their blood.
After the speech, the crowd had set fire to the shops of Muslims chanting inflammatory slogans – Katue kate jayenge, Ram Ram chillayenge (Muslims will be butchered and cry Ram-Ram). The police imposed a curfew and Yogi was arrested later on for violating and breaking the curfew. He was charged and jailed under Section 153A, Sections 146, 147, 279, 506 of the IPC.
The angry mob set ablaze the coaches of Mumbai-Gorakhpur Godan express. In the days that followed, several mosques, buses, trains and several other public properties were damaged. Apart from Gorakhpur, anti-Muslim violence also spread to the neighbouring areas including Deoria, Padrauna, Mahrajganj, Basti, Sant Kabeernagar and Siddarthanagar districts.
When officials including the then District Magistrate were transferred the day after the Yogi’s arrest, rumours erupted that Mulayam Singh Yadav was apparently helping Yogi Adityanath.
Social activist Pervez Parvaz and Asad Hayat filed a petition in Allahabad High Court seeking direction for FIR to be filed. But the court rejected the plea and directed to follow the procedure under section 156 (3).
Under the provision above, the matter complain was lodged before the CJM Gorakhpur, who rejected it after ten months. The matter was once again brought before the high court and finally, FIR could be lodged but the co-accused Anju Chaudhary took stay against the FIR and the investigation thereafter.
On Dec. 13, 2012 Supreme Court reject the SLP of Anju Chaudhary and ordered an investigation, but the UP government did not accord sanction.
On April 1, 2017 Allahabad high court had asked Uttar Pradesh government to file a reply for not giving a sanction against Yogi Adityanath pending investigation in a case of spreading communal hatred under section 153 (A).
State government was asked to file a reply within three weeks for CBCID investigation into the case against Yogi Adityanath and others. But during the last hearing, petitioner’s counsel SFA Naqvi raised the question over CBCID investigation saying “the person against whom sanction for prosecution has been granted by the state government has himself become the head of the state.”