Court nod to Kodnani for travel outside Gujarat

Ahmedabad: Former Gujarat minister of women and children development, Maya Kodnani, who is on conditional bail in Naroda Gam case one of the nine major cases pertaining to the 2002 riots in the state, was today again granted permission to move out of Gujarat by the special court hearing the case.

Notably, she was granted bail in the case in May 2009 with the condition that she won’t be able to leave Gujarat without prior permission of the court. Kodnani had sought to modify/relax this condition.

She had earlier got such relaxation twice last year for two periods of six months each. First from January 7 and then from July 7. He counsel had earlier submitted in the court that Kodnani is required to move outside Gujarat frequently for the purpose of composing herself from her ailment of depression by embarking on pilgrimages outside Gujarat along with family members. He also submitted that Kodnani was granted identical reliefs by the court earlier, and that she never violated the conditions imposed by the court.

The court today allowed her petition again with conditions like she should inform the state about her visit outside state at 24 hours in advance, shall also provide her active mobile number and address of places being visited to the investigating officer.

Kodnani was sentenced 28 years of jail term by the SIT court in Naroda Gam riot case in which 11 Muslims were killed. She was arrested in 2009 when she was still the minister of women and child welfare in the cabinet of Narendra Modi who was the Chief Minister then. She subsequently resigned. In August 2012, a special SIT court sentenced Kodnani 28 years of imprisonment but was granted relief by the Gujarat High Court in April 2018.

DeshGujarat