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{{Short description|Legal case surrounding a violent incident that took place in Gujrat, India in the year 2002}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=November 2022}}
{{Use Indian English|date=September 2019}}

The '''Best Bakery case''' was a [[legal case]] involving the burning down of the Best Bakery, a small outlet in the Hanuman Tekri area in [[Vadodara]], Gujarat, India, on 1 March 2002. During the incident, a mob targeted the Sheikh family who ran the bakery and had taken refuge inside, resulting in the deaths of fourteen people<ref name="chronR">{{Cite web |date=2006-02-24 |title=Chronology of events in Best Bakery case |url=https://www.rediff.com/news/2006/feb/24gujarat1.htm |website=Rediff |agency=Press Trust of India}}</ref> (11 Muslims including family members and 3 Hindu employees<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.indianexpress.com/news/best-bakery-case-bombay-hc-acquits-5-uphol/972133/|title=Best Bakery case: Bombay HC acquits 5, upholds life term to 4|date=9 July 2012}}</ref> of the bakery<ref name = raps>[https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3102864.stm Court raps Gujarat over riot case]</ref>). This case has come to symbolize the carnage in [[2002 Gujarat riots]] that followed the [[Godhra train burning]]. All the 21 accused were [[Acquittal|acquitted]] by the court due to shoddy [[police work]] and issues with evidence.<ref name = whyimportant/>

==Background==
On 1 March 2002, communal frenzy enveloped Vadodara.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20050117100058/http://www.tehelka.com/story_main10.asp?filename=ts010105best_bakery_case.asp Best Bakery case file]. Tehelka</ref> The Best Bakery, a small outlet in the Hanuman Tekri area of Vadodara,<ref name = whyimportant>[http://in.rediff.com/news/2006/feb/24best.htm &#91;https://cafeuppercrust.com/ Best Bakery&#93;: Why it is so important]</ref> was attacked by a mob, which burned down the bakery, killing 14 people.<ref name = BBC1>[https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3679878.stm Murder charges in Gujarat trial]. Wednesday, 22 September 2004. BBC</ref> This attack was part of the 2002 Gujarat riots. As per a televised interview by Zaheera Shaikh, one of the survivors who had witnessed the entire saga, a large mob surrounded the bakery in the evening, around 8 pm. They first stole all the goods that were kept in the bakery including sacks of flour. Thereafter they set fire to the bakery and the people inside, most of them Zaheera's [[Kinship|relatives]], shouting that ''no one should escape alive from it''.<ref>{{Cite news|last1=Sharma|first1=Pankaj|title=Televised interview - Zaheera Sheikh|publisher=Doordarshan}}</ref>

[[Amnesty International]] reports that in many cases of the [[2002 Gujarat riots|Gujarat violence]], police recorded complaints in a "defective" manner, failed to collect witnesses' statements as well as [[Corroborating evidence|corroborative evidence]] and did not investigate the responsibility of eminent suspects. The Best Bakery case was seen by human rights organizations in India as a test case given that what Amnesty calls "strong evidence" against the accused existed,<ref name="amnesty">{{Cite web |date=2003-07-08 |title=India: Best Bakery case – concerns for justice |url=https://www.amnesty.org/en/documents/ASA20/018/2003/en/ |access-date=2025-08-10 |publisher=Amnesty International}}</ref> but the victims gained little justice.<ref name = BBC1/>

==Case in 2003 and acquittal==
The case was tried at a fast court by the Vadodara sessions court judge Hemantsinh U Mahida. It lasted less than two months (9 May to 27 June 2003).<ref name="original"/>

The case hinged on the first hand evidence presented in two [[First information report|first information reports]] (FIR) that had been presented{{Spaced en dash}}that of Raizkhan Amin Mohammed Pathan and of Zaheera Sheikh. In addition, evidence was provided by a large number of witnesses whose evidence was secondary (indirect or hearsay).<ref name="original"/>

The day after the attack, Zaheera Sheikh filed the first informant complaint.<ref name = chronR/> Zaheera, a 19-year-old during the incident, was a key and notable witness. She stated that she saw a large mob set fire to their bakery and saw them burn her family members to death. When the mob gathered, shouting [[Communal violence|communal]] [[slogan]]s, her family fled to the terrace and some locked themselves in a first-floor room. The Sheikh family lived in a house directly above the bakery. The mob set the bakery on fire and killings continued from 6 pm to 10 am the next day, a period of sixteen hours. Her statements were recounted for many publications.<ref name = whyimportant/> However, as per documents presented to the court, Zaheera's FIR was registered by the Gujarat Police|police on 4 March 2002, leading the defence to oppose its use and the judge to suspect its validity and the possibility of it having been doctored by the police to implicate innocent people at the expense of the guilty perpetrators. The defence purported that only the FIR that was registered on FIR of 1 March 2002 (by Raizkhan Amin Mohammed Pathan)  should be admissible under Section 60 of the [[Indian Evidence Act]].<ref name="original">{{Cite web|title=Session Case No. 248 / 2002|url=http://www.cjponline.org/best/vadjudgement.pdf|website=www.cjponline.org|publisher=Vadodara Sessions Court|access-date=6 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160312160441/http://www.cjponline.org/best/vadjudgement.pdf|archive-date=12 March 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Further, in court on 23 March 2003, as many as 37 of the 73 witnesses, including Sheikh, turned [[hostile witness|hostile]].<ref name = whyimportant/><ref name="The skull beneath the skin">{{Cite news |last1=Sen |first1=Antara Dev |title=The skull beneath the skin |url=http://www.littlemag.com/ghosts/antaradevsen.html |access-date=14 June 2017 |publisher=The Little Magazine |volume=IV |issue=4}}</ref> It was later alleged by their former mentors that they had received threats to their lives, including from [[Shrivastav Madhubhai Babubhai|Madhu Shrivastav]]. Other witnesses gave garbled and self-contradictory witness account, strikingly at variance with the lucid, grammatical and logical written affidavits which had previously been filed in their name. The prosecution claimed that these witnesses had suffered head injuries and were not in a mental state to give an accurate account of their experiences, but could not explain the lucidity of the affidavits. The state government pointed to the lapses by the [[Gujarat Police]] in "registering and recording of FIR" and on the part of the prosecution in "recording of evidence" of witnesses in the Best Bakery case.<ref>[http://www.rediff.com/news/2003/dec/22godhra.htm Gujarat govt admits lapses in Best Bakery case], 23 December 2003.</ref>

As a result of all these, the prosecution's case collapsed in court and all of the 21 accused were acquitted. The judgment was delivered on 27 June 2003 by additional sessions judge [[Hemantsinh U Mahida]] of the Vadodara fast track court.<ref name = BBC1/><ref name=CJP>[http://www.sabrang.com/cjp/best/factfile.htm Best Bakery Factfile] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080513144045/http://www.sabrang.com/cjp/best/factfile.htm |date=13 May 2008 }}</ref><ref>"[http://www.newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEH20041222230113&Page=H&Title=Top+Stories&Topic=0& Best Bakery case: MLA now claims Zaheera was paid off a year ago]." [http://www.newindpress.com Newindpress.com] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080301225246/http://www.newindpress.com/|date=1 March 2008}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.expressindia.com/news/fullstory.php?newsid=38613 |title=Zaheera's second brother also does a U-turn<!-- Bot generated title --> |access-date=8 September 2010 |archive-date=10 October 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121010043430/http://www.expressindia.com/news/fullstory.php?newsid=38613 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The judgment said, "It was proved beyond doubt that a violent mob had attacked the bakery and killed 12 persons. However, there was no legally acceptable evidence to prove that any of the accused presented before the court had committed the crime." The judgment was critical of the police for delay in registering FIR and for not investigating the incident properly and harassing innocent people, including the accused.<ref name="cjp">{{Cite web|title=CJP's Rebuttal on Media Coverage of Supreme Court Proceedings, April 13, 2009|url=http://www.cjponline.org/cjprebuttal.htm|website=www.cjponline.org|publisher=Citizens for justice and peace|access-date=6 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180119120047/http://www.cjponline.org/cjprebuttal.htm|archive-date=19 January 2018|url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Reactions==
A large section of the press expressed outrage for a prolonged period at the acquittals.{{Who|date=February 2023}} It was reported that key witnesses in the case had lied in court out of fear for their lives as they had been given [[death threat]]s. Key witnesses in the case include the wife and daughter of the bakery owner. They accused [[Bharatiya Janata Party|party politicians]] of threatening and harassing them into withdrawing their testimony.<ref>[http://www.sabrang.com/cjp/best/factfile.htm Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP)<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080513144045/http://www.sabrang.com/cjp/best/factfile.htm |date=13 May 2008 }}</ref> According to their testimony to the police and the [[National Human Rights Commission (India)|National Human Rights Commission]], 500 people had attacked the bakery. Amnesty International criticized the judgment as "the lack of government commitment to ensuring justice to victims of the [[communal violence]] in Gujarat."<ref name = amnesty/> India's [[National Human Rights Commission]] described it as a "miscarriage of justice" and, along with other petitioners, argued that the case should be investigated by an independent agency. The [[Supreme Court of India|Supreme court]] expressed displeasure at the acquittal.<ref>Majumder, Sanjoy. "[https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3104280.stm Gujarat and the judges' anger]," 12 September 2003. BBC news</ref>

The Gujarat government responded by pointing out many other cases where the guilty were left unpunished. Solicitor General [[Mukul Rohatgi]] cited the [[1984 Anti-Sikh riots|anti-Sikh riots]] of 1984 and said many of the accused are still free.<ref name = raps/>

==Re-trial and hostile witnesses==
Soon after the sessions court judgement, Zaheera and her mother gave interviews to the media stating that they had lied in court. On 5 July 2003, Zaheera and her mother told ''The Sunday Express'' that Zaheera had lied in court because she had received death threats. On 7 July 2003, Zaheera told the media that [[Bharatiya Janata Party|Bhartiya Janta Party]] (BJP) MLA [[Madhu Srivastava]] and his cousin, [[Indian National Congress|Congress]] councilor [[Chandrakant Srivastava]] were behind the threats, hence  she sought a [[re-trial]] ''outside'' Gujarat. Due to this, media coverage and protests by several citizens groups, the 
[[National Human Rights Commission of India|National Human Rights Commission]] (NHRC) visited Vadodara on 8 July to examine documents related to the case. The NHRC moved a [[Special Leave Petitions in India|Special Leave Petition]] in the Supreme Court on 31 July 2003 asking for a [[retrial]] outside Gujarat.<ref name="telegraph">{{Cite news|last1=Rawat|first1=Basant|title=Bakery judge skirts job row|url=https://www.telegraphindia.com/1040609/asp/nation/story_3349119.asp|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180119062151/https://www.telegraphindia.com/1040609/asp/nation/story_3349119.asp|url-status=dead|archive-date=19 January 2018|access-date=6 July 2017|publisher=Telegraph|date=8 June 2003}}</ref>

Aware of media outrage, three [[Supreme court judges|Supreme Court judges]] ordered the head of Gujarat police and the [[chief secretary of Gujarat]] to appear before the court in order to [[Explanation|explain]] their actions in the incident.<ref name = raps/> [[Chief Justice of India|Chief Justice]] [[VN Khare]] said he had "no confidence" in the [[Gujarat government]], while the [[Supreme court of India|Indian Supreme Court]] criticized the government and ordered a retrial. The Supreme Court ordered that the retrial be moved out of Gujarat after accusing the state government of [[Judiciary|judicial]] [[failure]]s on 12 April 2004 in [[Maharashtra]]. The orders were passed by Justice [[Doraiswamy Raju]] and Justice [[Arijit Pasayat]].<ref name="rediff2">{{Cite news|title=Zahira turns hostile|url=http://www.rediff.com/news/2004/dec/21best.htm|access-date=6 July 2017|publisher=Rediff|date=5 December 2004}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Judgement of the Gujarat High Court in BEST Bakery Case (12 January 2004)|url=http://www.cjponline.org/best/hcjudgement.pdf|website=www.cjponline.org|publisher=HIGH COURT OF GUJARAT AT AHMEDABAD|access-date=6 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160313024746/http://www.cjponline.org/best/hcjudgement.pdf|archive-date=13 March 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref>

On 24 September 2004, charges were framed by Judge [[Abhay Thipsay]] in [[Mumbai]] and the retrial began on 4 October 2004. During the first few weeks, the formal prosecution witnesses were examined and witnesses to the Best Bakery massacre began to testifying on 27 October 2004 as part of the proceedings of Case 315 of 2004 at the [[Sessions Court|Greater sessions court]] at [[Mazgaon]], Mumbai.<ref name="originalsessions">{{Cite web|title=Final judgement (693 pages) - Case 315 of 2004|url=http://www.indiajudgments.com/resources/Best%20Bakery-Mazagaon%20Court%20Judgment.PDF|website=www.indiajudgments.com|publisher=Sessions court, Mazgaon (Government of India)|access-date=6 July 2017|archive-date=14 December 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221214110342/http://www.indiajudgments.com/resources/Best%20Bakery-Mazagaon%20Court%20Judgment.PDF|url-status=dead}}</ref> These witnesses included  Tufel Ahmed, Raees Khan Pathan and Shehzad Khan, who worked at the bakery and witnessed the events.<ref name="telegraph"/>

However, on 3 November 2004, Zaheera filed an affidavit at the High Court stating, "If we don't lie as instructed by Teesta, then these people will get me and my family members killed," Zaheera said with regard to [[Teesta Setalvad]], a journalist and activist who was assisting to obtain justice for the riot victims.
Further, she said that "after the fast track court had acquitted the 21 accused, two Muslims had barged into her house and told her that to change her statement in the interest of the community. Thereafter she along with brother were taken to Mumbai to Teesta Setalvad." Her statements were vague, often self-contradictory, but she insisted that she had been kept captive by Setalvad who had made her sign some legal papers. She further said that the matter was taken to Supreme Court against her wishes.<ref name="outlook">{{Cite news|title=Court hearings in Best bakery case|url=http://www.outlookindia.com/newswire/story/best-bakery-hc-to-hear-appeals-from-march-5/750582|access-date=6 July 2017|publisher=Outlook India}}</ref><ref name="originalsessions"/>

In June 2005, the investigating officer [[P.P. Kanani]] was cross examined. Kanani had taken over as investigating officer from [[Himmatsinh Baria]] of Panigate Police Station on 10 March 2002. On 29 August 2005, a committee appointed by the Supreme Court of India|Supreme court indicted Zaheera Sheikh as a "liar" and criticized her series of "flip-flop statements".<ref name="originalsessions"/> The Government of Gujarat filed an amended appeal in the [[Gujarat High Court]] seeking a retrial of the case and the appeal was admitted by the Gujarat High Court. After being indicted by the [[Supreme Court of India]], the police registered a case against [[Shrivastav Madhubhai Babubhai]] for intimidating witnesses to the incident.<ref name="cct">{{Cite web |title=Crime against humanity : a comprehensive report on the Gujarat riots |url=http://www.sabrang.com/tribunal/ |access-date=6 July 2017 |website=www.sabrang.com |publisher=Concerned Citizens Tribunal}}</ref><ref name="originalsessions"/>

The [[government of Gujarat]] admitted that there were lapses on the part of the Gujarat Police|police in registering and recording FIR in the case and on the part of the prosecution in recording the evidence of witnesses. It said that the police had attempted to help the accused by not submitting names of the accused. Meanwhile, Zahira Sheikh, admitted lying in court and not testifying against the accused. She said she had been threatened by senior figures in the local organisation of Gujarat's ruling party, the [[Hindutva|Hindu]] right-wing [[Bharatiya Janata Party]]. Thus 17 of the accused charged with murdering 14 people  were retried in the case beginning in 2004.<ref>[https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3712574.stm Gujarat riot murder retrial opens]</ref>

==Perjury==
A serious dent to Best Bakery case key witness Zaheera Sheikh's credibility, a Supreme Court-appointed committee has indicted her as a "self-condemned liar" falling to "inducements" by "certain persons" to give "inconsistent" statements during the trial of the case. A bench comprising Justice Arijit Pasayat and Justice [[H. K. Sema|H K Sema]] opened the sealed report and read out the three main conclusions of the committee headed by [[Supreme Court Registrar General]] [[B M Gupta]]. At the same time, the committee gave a clean chit to social activist [[Teesta Setalvad|Teesta Setalavad]] of the charges of inducement levelled against her by Zahira.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://www.rediff.com/news/2005/aug/29best.htm|title=Supreme Court panel calls Zahira a liar|website=www.rediff.com|access-date=11 November 2019}}</ref>

On 10 January 2005, the court referred the matter for inquiry on being faced with the flip-flops of Zahira much to the embarrassment of her one time protector and social activist Setalavad. The bench, after glancing through the over 150-page report, said that the committee has come to the conclusion that there was inducement given to Zahira by certain persons and that there were inconsistencies in her statements. The court made it clear that it has not accepted the report and sought the opinion of the counsel for both Zahira and Setalavad in regard to 'acceptability' of the report.<ref name=":0" />

===Allegation of false depositions===
Mother of prime witness in the Best Bakery case Zahira Sheikh, was on Thursday held guilty of contempt of court by the special court conducting the re-trial here. The court imposed a fine of Rs 100 on Sehrunnisa after reading her reply to a show-cause notice issued to her earlier in the day. Sehrunnisa was taken into custody after the trial court initiated contempt proceedings against her for her defiant attitude during her deposition as a witness. While tendering evidence, she frequently looked at Raes Khan, an NGO activist, who was sitting in the court.
Even after the judge told her to address the court and not to look at others she continued to look at Raes. The judge warned her that she could be held for contempt, to which Sehrunnisa replied: "Please take action against me." Sehrunnisa said Raes was gesturing at her and hence, she was looking at him.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.rediff.com/news/2004/dec/16best.htm|title=Court fines Zaheera's mother|website=www.rediff.com|access-date=11 November 2019}}</ref>

==Life sentences==
In February 2006, a court in India convicted nine of the 21 people of murder, sentencing them to life imprisonment. It acquitted 8 others, while issuing warrants for the arrest of four missing persons.<ref name = BBCLife>[https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/4745926.stm Life sentences in India riot case]. [[BBC News]].</ref> Of the nine convicted for life by the trial court, Bombay High Court acquitted five for want of evidence, but upheld the sentence in respect of the remaining four.<ref>{{Cite news| url= http://www.indianexpress.com/news/best-bakery-case-bombay-hc-acquits-5-upholds-life-term-to-4/972133/| title= Best Bakery case: Bombay HC acquits 5, upholds life term to 4| date= 9 July 2012}}</ref>

The judgment, called "landmark" by [[BBC]] journalist [[Sanjoy Majumder]], brought the case to an end. The case has the legacy of being "one of the country's most controversial and high profile trials."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Majumder |first=Sanjoy |date=2006-02-24 |title=Landmark judgement raises hope |url=https://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4747082.stm |website=BBC News}}</ref>

==2012 Bombay High Court==
On 9 July 2012, the [[Bombay High Court]], upheld the life sentences of four accused, Sanjay Thakkar, Bahadursingh Chauhan, Sanabhai Baria and Dinesh Rajbhar on the basis of four eyewitness accounts, who were injured bakery employees and identified the accused. It acquitted five accused, Rajubhai Baria, Pankaj Gosavi, Jagdish Rajput, Suresh alias Lalo Devjibhai Vasava and Shailesh Tadvi, for lack of evidence.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Best Bakery case: 5 let off, 4 nailed |url=http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/Mumbai/Best-Bakery-case-5-let-off-4-nailed/Article1-885843.aspx |publisher=[[Hindustan Times]] |date=9 July 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120712003626/http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/Mumbai/Best-Bakery-case-5-let-off-4-nailed/Article1-885843.aspx |archive-date=12 July 2012 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |title=Best Bakery case: 5 acquitted, life term for four upheld |url=http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/other-states/article3620604.ece |work=The Hindu |date=9 July 2012 |access-date=10 July 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120711231002/http://www.thehindu.com/news/states/other-states/article3620604.ece |archive-date=11 July 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Gulbarg Society massacre]]
*[[Naroda Patiya massacre]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.sabrang.com/tribunal/ Detailed Report on the Godhra riots by the Concerned Citizens Tribunal]
* [http://www.indiajudgments.com/resources/Best%20Bakery-Mazagaon%20Court%20Judgment.PDF 693 page judgement by the Sessions court Mazgaon on Best bakery case - case 315 of 2004] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221214110342/http://www.indiajudgments.com/resources/Best%20Bakery-Mazagaon%20Court%20Judgment.PDF |date=14 December 2022 }}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20080706155454/http://www.supremecourt.manupatra.com/ Free Supreme Court Judgements]
* [http://home.gujarat.gov.in/homedepartment/downloads/godharaincident.pdf Report By The Commission of Inquiry Consisting of Mr. Justice G.T. Nanavati And Mr. Justice Akshay H. Mehta] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130316134832/http://home.gujarat.gov.in/homedepartment/downloads/godharaincident.pdf |date=16 March 2013 }}
* {{Cite news |title= What is Best Bakery Case? |url=http://ibnlive.in.com/news/what-is-best-bakery-case/270274-3.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120712151335/http://ibnlive.in.com/news/what-is-best-bakery-case/270274-3.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=12 July 2012 |publisher=[[CNN-IBN]] |date=9 July 2012 }}

{{2002 Gujarat Violence}}

[[Category:2002 Gujarat riots]]
[[Category:2002 riots]]
[[Category:2002 murders in India]]
[[Category:Attacks on bakeries]]
[[Category:Bakeries of India]]
[[Category:Looting in India]]
[[Category:Indian case law]]
[[Category:Attacks on buildings and structures in 2002]]
[[Category:2002 in case law]]
[[Category:2002 in Indian law]]
[[Category:Persecution by Hindus]]
[[Category:Building and structure arson attacks in India]]
[[Category:March 2002 in India]]
[[Category:Arson in 2002]]
[[Category:2002 fires in Asia]]
[[Category:Attacks on shops in India]]
[[Category:Family murders]]