US court summons Modi in 2002 Gujarat riots case The 28-page complaint charges Modi with committing crimes against humanity, extra-judicial killings, torture and inflicting mental and physical trauma on the victims, mostly from the Muslim community. NEW DELHI: A federal court in New York has issued a summon against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his alleged role in presiding over the 2002 Gujarat sectarian riots in which more than 1,000 people, mostly Muslims, were killed, when he was the chief minister of the state. The federal court summon came hours before Modi was supposed to start off his five-day trip to the United States. The New York-based American Justice Centre, a non profit organisation, obtained the summons from the US Federal Court for the Southern District of New York in a suit filed with two survivors of what it called the horrific and organized violence of Gujarat 2002. The summon requires Modi to respond within 21 days after it is served. The Hindu reports that if the prime minister fails to answer then a judgement by default will be made against Modi for the relief demanded in the complaint. Filed under the Alien Tort Claims Act (ATCA) and the Torture Victim Protection Act (TVPA), the 28-page complaint charges Modi with committing crimes against humanity, extra-judicial killings, torture and inflicting mental and physical trauma on the victims, mostly from the Muslim community. AJC said it is providing legal support and advice to the survivors in their effort to hold Modi accountable for his complicity in the violence. The survivors are suing Modi for the loss of lives and trauma in their families, and caused emotional, financial and psychological devastation in their lives. The Tort Case against Prime Minister Modi is an unequivocal message to human rights abusers everywhere, said John Bradley, an AJC director. Time and place and the trappings of power will not be an impediment to justice. The Alien Tort Claims Act, also known as Alien Tort Statute (ATS), is a US federal law first adopted in 1789 that gives the federal courts jurisdiction to hear lawsuits filed by US residents for acts committed in violation of international law outside the US, AJC said. The group has routinely obtained such summons against visiting Indian leaders, including former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Congress party president Sonia Gandhi. https://in.news.yahoo/us-court-summons-modi-in-2002-gujarat-riots-case-051027414.html
Posted on: Wed, 01 Oct 2014 09:01:57 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015