AHMEDABAD: The Gujarat High Court on Thursday granted bail to one of the 31 convicts of the Naroda Patiya riot case of 2002. As many as 97 people were killed at Naroda Patiya here during a post-Godhra riot. The division bench of justices RR Tripathi and RD Kothari granted bail to Kirpalsingh Chhabda, who was the personal assistant to former Gujarat minister Maya Kodnani (convicted in the same case) on the ground of ‘parity’. Chhabda’s petition said he should be released as Kodnani had already been granted bail last July. There were only two witnesses who deposed against him,
while 11 witnesses deposed against Kodnani, Chabda’s petition pointed out. Further, none of the witnesses had alluded to his overt role in the riot, it said. The Supreme Court-appointed special investigation team had opposed his plea. Special prosecutor Prashant Desai argued that Kodnani was granted bail only on the ground of deteriorating health, which was not the case here.