AHMEDABAD: The G.T. Nanavati and K.G. Shah judicial inquiry commission probing the Godhra train carnage and the post-Godhra communal riots in Gujarat in 2002, has decided to examine "in camera" the former crime branch police officer, Rahul Sharma, on the "genuineness" of the compact discs containing the list of the mobile phone calls made during the riots.

The decision to call Mr. Sharma on June 8 for questioning was taken by the commission here on Monday after prolonged arguments by Mukul Sinha, advocate for the Jan Sangharsha Manch, which is fighting cases for the riot victims.

The commission also rejected "as of now" Mr. Sinha's request for a cross examination of additional Director-General of Police R.B. Shreekumar on his affidavit in which he stated that the then State Director-General of Police, K. Chakravarthy, had communicated to him Chief Minister Narendra Modi's "instruction" to the police not to interfere.

The commission felt that if a senior IPS officer under oath had filed an affidavit it should be accepted at face value unless proved otherwise. The commission said another cross-examination of Mr. Shreekumar, who appeared before the commission earlier, would be considered later.

About Mr. Sharma, who now is on deputation in the CBI, the commission said a decision on Mr. Sinha's demand for a close analysis of the CDs would be taken after the two commission members questioned the police officer. No one, not even the advocates, would be allowed to remain present when Justice Nanavati and Justice Shah questioned Mr. Sharma. Mr. Sinha suggested that the advocates be allowed to remain present with a promise not to put any questions to Mr. Sharma, but this was not granted.

The commission would be questioning Mr. Sharma about the preparation of the CDs and how "genuine" the information on the discs was. The CDs were prepared by the mobile phone companies at the instance of Mr. Sharma after he was shifted to the crime branch from Bhavnagar where he was the district superintendent of police during the riots.

Mr. Sinha said close analysis of the CDs could reveal "vital information" about the calls made to and by Sangh Parivar activists and their locations on February 28, 2002, when the Naroda-Patiya and Gulbarg Society incidents took place in Ahmedabad.

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