Mumbai: A special court here on Friday acquitted for lack of evidence Shiv Sena legislator Gajanan Kirtikar and five others, including a corporator, of the charges of instigating violence during the Mumbai riots in 1992-93. While acquitting them, Magistrate R C Bapat Sarkar said the Investigating Officer's statement had failed to prove the prosecution case.

On Dec 7, 1992, Mumbai Police accused 20 people of unlawful assembly and instigating violence. The other Shiv Sena men accused in the cases are corporator Ravindra Waikar, Nandkumar Kale, Raghunath Kadam, Shridhar Khade and Lalta Prasad Singh.

They were charged with violating Section 39 of the Bombay Police Act (unlawful assembly), various sections of the Criminal Procedure Code for instigating violence, and Section 153(a) of the Indian Penal Code for conspiracy.

So far, there have been only two convictions while about 40 people have been acquitted in the on-going trial for the 1992-93 riots. In January 2000, the Democratic Front government set up an agency in the riots case, called the Special Task Force (STF), to prosecute those found guilty by the Srikrishna Commission.

The commission held many Shiv Sena workers guilty of involvement in the riots that took place after the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya Dec 6, 1992.

Source : IANS