Shamima Kausar, the mother of Ishrat Jahan who was killed in an alleged fake encounter by Gujarat police, on Tuesday told a special CBI court in Ahmedabad that she could no longer attend the case proceedings as she feels “hopeless and helpless” after a prolonged fight for justice.
Special CBI court Judge R.K. Chudawala is hearing the discharge applications filed by four accused policemen, including inspector-general of police G.L. Singhal, former DSP Tarun Barot, former deputy superintendent J.G. Parmar and assistant sub-inspector Anaju Chaudhary.
The CBI had questioned Amit Shah, who was Gujarat home minister when the alleged encounter took place in 2004, and said it could not find evidence against him.
In a letter filed in the court, Kausar said: “I am heartbroken, my spirit shattered, at the perpetuation of this culture of impunity.”
Kausar said she was distancing herself from the court proceedings and calling upon the CBI to secure the conviction of the accused.
“After this prolonged fight for justice, I now feel hopeless and helpless. More than 15 years have passed, all the accused, including police officials, are on bail. Some of them were reinstated by the Gujarat government even as they faced prosecution for the murder of my daughter. After 15 years, the trial has barely begun,” she said.
Kausar said her daughter was innocent and killed as a result of a “horrific criminal conspiracy and design because she was a Muslim woman, and it served political interest to project her as a dreaded terrorist”.
Gujarat police had claimed Ishrat, 19, and the three others who were killed had links with Lashkar-e-Toiba terrorists.
“I have instructed my counsel, advocate Vrinda Grover, that at present, I have lost my will to fight, and can no longer participate in the proceedings before the CBI court. The long drawn and labyrinthine judicial process has exhausted and frustrated me,” she said.
Kausar said that in her struggle for justice for her daughter, she found herself “seeking the prosecution and punishment of some very powerful police officers of Gujarat, who were in service and enjoyed the patronage of the state”.
“This culture of impunity needs to be eradicated to protect the lives of many vulnerable innocent citizens. This cannot be my battle alone. It is now up to the CBI to see that the guilty are prosecuted and punished,” she said.
“I call upon the CBI to secure the conviction of the accused police officers and other guilty persons. The need for transparency, accountability, and an end to impunity by men in uniform has never been more,” she said.
