Once her ‘tormentor,’ BJP MLA now claims Zaheera was paid off a year ago

Days after the fast-track court acquitted all 21 accused in the Best Bakery massacre in June 2003, one of the main witnesses Sehrunissa Shei...

Days after the fast-track court acquitted all 21 accused in the Best Bakery massacre in June 2003, one of the main witnesses Sehrunissa Sheikh, wife of the bakery owner, had told The Indian Express that she and her daughter Zaheera had lied in court ‘‘trembling with fear.’’ Although she didn’t name BJP MLA Madhu Shrivastava, she referred to him as ‘‘daadhiwala aadmi’’ (a bearded man) as the one who accompanied Zaheera to court the day she turned hostile.

Now that man and his cousin Chandrakant Bhattu Shrivastava have been shown on tape, in a sting operation by Tehelka, claiming they paid Rs 18 lakh to Zaheera for that U-turn which led to the acquittal in June 2003. They are both shown talking to Vadodara corporator Nisar Bapu who, along with his son, was accused in another riots case in the murder of a Hindu youth. Nisar has been acquitted but his son’s appeal against his conviction is pending.

‘‘When Zaheera first turned hostile at the Vadodara fast track court on May 21, 2003, she had already counted the bucks,’’ said a statement issued by Tehelka at a press conference called to announce the sting.

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In Mumbai, where she is appearing in the re-trial, Zaheera denied the charges repeating her earlier statement that she doesn’t know either Madhu or Bhattu.

It was after The Indian Express had reported Sehrunissa’s statement that the Supreme Court intervened, the case was re-opened and then moved to Mumbai, where Zaheera and her family did another U-turn last month alleging that social activist Teesta Setalvad, who took her under her wings, gave her shelter and was the prime mover in the re-opening of the case, had held her captive, coerced her into making the earlier turnaround and taken the case to the Supreme Court against her wishes. Setlavad has since gone to the Supreme Court asking for a CBI probe.

Today’s Tehelka tape showed Madhu Shrivastava as saying: “Woh mere ghar par aa ke abhi royi. Hum koi bulane nahi gaye the usko.” Bapu is shown asking, ‘‘Kitna de diya? 18 se 20 lakh rupaiah de diya kya?’’ To which Madhu’s reply is: ‘‘18 lakh rupaiah.’’

In another conversation with Nisar Bapu, Congress councillor Bhattu is shown as saying: ‘‘First, it started from Rs 25 lakh and got stuck at Rs 18-20 lakh. Then after collecting cash from everyone, she was given Rs 18 lakh in cash.’’

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The 10-minute videotape also featured Zaheera’s maternal grandmother Zareena Shahu saying how she witnessed her son being killed by the mob.

Said Setalvad who was present at Tehelka’s press conference: ‘‘Those who are giving cash are accusing others of giving money, so you can judge,’’ she said.

Then mother had said: They speak of 25 lakh, 12 lakh, we didn’t get 1 lakh

	• March 1, 2002: Mob burns Best Bakery, killing 14 Muslims • Feb 27, 2003: Zaheera: ‘‘I have kept my blood-soaked clothes, they remind me that justice has not been done’’ • May 17, 2003: Zaheera turns hostile in Vadodara court: ‘‘My statements of March 9 and April 1, 2002, to the police are false. It was dark, full of smoke, I can’t recall anyone’’ n June 27, 2003: Vadodara court acquits all 21 accused • July 5, 2003: Mother Sehrunnisa—and later Zaheera in Mumbai—tells The Sunday Express that they lied in court fearing for their lives: Dehelte dehelte kaanpte kaanpte jhooth bola tha court mein Asked whether money had changed hands, Sehrunissa said: ‘‘They speak of Rs 25 lakh, Rs 12 lakh being paid, we’ve not got even 1 lakh’’ • July 7, 2003: Zaheera tells The Indian Express that she was threatened by BJP MLA Madhu Shrivastava and his cousin Cong councillor Chandrakant Bhattu • July 12, 2003: Zaheera seeks NHRC help in reopening case n July 31, 2003: NHRC moves Supreme Court, seeking re-trial • April 12, 2004: SC quashes acquittal of all 21 accused, orders re-investigation and re-trial • June 7, 2004: Re-trial opens in Mumbai court • Nov 4, 2004: Zaheera does U-turn again, says: ‘‘Whatever we said after leaving Vadodara was due to threats from Teesta (Setalvad). The Vadodara court judgment was right’’ • Dec 21, 2004: Zaheera declared hostile in Mumbai court