After being repeatedly denied a meeting, the Vadodara police have issued yet another summons to Best Bakery main witness Zaheera Sheikh. The summons ask her to reply within seven days as to when she can make a statement in connection with a complaint, in which her brother, Nafitullah Sheikh, had alleged that his family received threats during the Best Bakery trial in May 2003.The summons were issued on Saturday after the police failed to meet Zaheera in Mumbai. ‘‘After our last summons — we have issued more than 15 — we were asked to come to Mumbai between September 9 and 15. However, when we reached there, only Nafitullah, Zaheera’s younger brother, was allowed to meet us by activist Teesta Setalvad. Now, we have issued another summons,’’ said the investigating officer Raj Pargi.In Delhi to appear for the September 20 Supreme Court hearing, Pargi said though Teesta had again promised cooperation, the delay was hampering investigations. Zaheera’s mother, Sehrunissa, and elder brother, Nasibullah, too, have been named in the summons. When contacted, Vadodara Police Commissioner Sudhir Sinha said despite their efforts to take the complaint to its logical conclusion, non-cooperation from complainants was delaying the probe.When asked if the police had other means to obtain statements, Sinha said though they had legal powers to get warrants, the police were taking a lenient stance as the complainants were victims in an important case being monitored by the SC.Summons have been either ‘‘faxed or conveyed on phone to Setalvad as she is the family custodian. We have never approached the family directly,’’ said Sinha.
