Godhra train burning: Why arrest of Farooq Bhana is a major victory

New Delhi, May 18: The arrest of Farooq Bhana is a shot in the arm for the Special Investigating Team probing the Godhra carnage.

While a special court had ruled that the Godhra train fire that killed 59 people in 2002 was a result of a conspiracy, there were still many angles to the incident that required a probe. The investigators feel that he will help unravel the mystery further.

In this context, the arrest of Farooq Bhana who has been absconding since 2002 is a major victory for the probe team. Bhana was one of the main conspirators of the train burning and he along with many others had gone absconding following the incident.

The conspiracy:

The conspiracy was hatched at Aman Guest House, Panchal. The train was stopped, its power supply snapped, a large amount of petrol was poured and the coach set on fire. It was stated by the investigators that the fire on the coach S-6 of the Sabarmati Express was lit to target kar sevaks who were returning from Ayodhya.

The court had found found Razak Kurkur, the owner of Aman Guest House, to be the main conspirator along with the absconding Salim Panwala and Farooq Bhana who are suspected to be in Pakistan. Haji Bilal, a former Godhra municipal councillor, is another key accused found guilty.

Kurkur, Panwala, Bhana, Salim Zarda and Salim Bana - had met at Aman Guest House on February 26 and hatched the conspiracy and six persons had entered the coach and poured petrol.

In all, there were 134 accused, of whom 14 were released for lack of evidence, five were juvenile, five died and 16 were absconding.

OneIndia News