Ahmedabad: Slapping POTA (Prevention of Terrorism Act) against all the 12 accused in the case of murder of former Gujarat Home Minister Haren Pandya, the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) on June 2 submitted to a local court that the accused were "inimical" towards Pandya and targeted him as they held him "responsible" for the killing of Muslims during Godhra riots in 2002.

The 12 accused were arrested in various batches from Hyderabad and Ahmedabad.

"The main accused and his accomplices were inimical towards the deceased Haren Pandya and he was targeted because he was a leader of a particular community, who according to the accused, was responsible for killing Muslims," deputy superintendent of police (CBI) S K Gupta submitted to the metropolitan court.

Reasoning the invoking of anti-terror law, Gupta also told the court that "Investigations till now have revealed that a major conspiracy was hatched to strike terror in minds of a particular section of people in Gujarat by using firearms causing death and injury to persons as retaliation to the alleged indiscriminate murder of members of Muslim community during post-Godhra communal riots in Ahmedabad."

PTI