Gujarat ATS detains activist Teesta Setalvad from Mumbai

Teesta Setalvad. File Pic

Activist Teesta Setalvad was on Saturday detained by the Gujarat Anti Terrorist Squad (ATS) from Mumbai and taken to Gujarat in connection with an FIR registered against her. As a legal process, the team of Gujarat Police officials also visited Santacruz police station in western Mumbai, police sources said.

An FIR has been registered by the Gujarat Police against Teesta Setalvad and several others. the FIR also mentions former IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt as accused in the case, sources said.

Sources added, the FIR mentions about allegations of sharing wrong and false information about Gujarat riots. The accused through Zakia Jafri put several petitions in court with alleged false information.

The Supreme Court had on Friday dismissed a plea of Zakia Jafri, the wife of slain MP Ehsan Jafri, challenging the Special Investigation Team's (SIT) clean chit to 64 people, including then Chief Minister Narendra Modi, in the 2002 Gujarat riots case.

A senior officer from Gujarat Police said, "An FIR has been registered by the Gujarat crime branch after the Honorable Supreme court verdict. Our team from the ATS have detained one of the accused in the case from Mumbai and is being brought to Gujarat for questioning."

Allegations as per the FIR states that, by allegedly fabricating false evidence and information to make several persons to be convicted for an offence that is punishable with capital punishment thereby committing an offence punishable under relevant sections of the Indian Panal Code.

While dismissing the plea, the apex court on Friday said, Zakia Jafri's appeal is devoid of merits and deserves to be dismissed.