Telecom cos unable to provide call data to Nanavati Commission

Ahmedabad, Oct 11 (UNI) Telephone service providers -- Cellforce and AT&T -- have written to the Nanavati-Shah Commission, probing into the post-Godhra riot cases, expressing their inability to provide details of calls made by at least 40 people during the eight days beginning February 25, 2002.

The Commission had directed the two service providers to provide details of calls made by at least 40 people, including top police officials and Chief Minister Narendra Modi, during the eight days.

The two-member Commission, comprising Justice G T Nanavati and Justice K G Shah, had on September 29 asked the two service providers to furnish the details as the Commission wanted to check the veracity of the compact disc produced by CBI officer Rahul Sharma which allegedly contains ''incriminating evidence about the politicians-police-rioteers nexus during the 2002 riots in Gujarat''.

The Gujarat government had told the Commission that it did not possess copies of the CDs which contained data of mobile phone calls made in the state during the 2002 communal riots.

The state government, in a written reply on August 5, had told the Commission that Mr Sharma had never submitted the said CDs or any information regarding the CDs to it.

A non governmental organisation, Jan Sangharsh Manch, has alleged that the CDs contain ''prima facie evidence of the collusion between politicians, police and rioteers''. The NGO has contended that the CDs were procured by Mr Sharma when he was assisting the Ahmedabad Crime Branch in investigating two post-Godhra riot cases -- the Naroda Patiya and Gulbarg massacre cases.

State government counsel Arvind Pandya had requested the Commission to supply copies of the CDs. He had also urged the Commission not to consider any allegations made by the Jan Sangharash Manch on the basis of the controversial CDs.

UNI