MUMBAI, Nov 18: A Muslim witness in a high-profile Indian riot case on Thursday recanted a statement in which he had named 10 men accused of burning and hacking to death 14 people during cim religious violence in 2002.
Nasibullah Sheikh was one of the main witnesses in the Best Bakery case - named after his family's shop in Gujarat's Baroda city, which was attacked by an armed mob of more than 1,500 people on March 1, 2002.
According to human rights groups, violence in the western state of Gujarat two years ago killed at least 2,500 people, mainly Muslims.
The Best Bakery case is seen as a test of whether justice can be had for the hundreds of Muslims killed in the riots.
When the prosecution read out to Nasib Sheikh his police statement recorded after the massacre, he denied that he had named 10 people among the accused.
He told the court that he and his family members had taken shelter on the bakery's terrace when a huge mob that gathered around the building was throwing bottles at them.
"It was dark and there was thick smoke. I could not see anything," Sheikh said. "There (on the terrace) I fell unconscious as something came from behind and hit my head. How could I recognise anyone?"
As Sheikh denied most of the statements made in the police record, the judge granted the prosecution's request to declare him as being "hostile" to the case.
According to lawyers, a witness's testimony is expected to match any statement made to police. If a statement is retracted, the witness is declared by the court to be hostile, meaning their testimony no longer supports the prosecution's case.
Sheikh's recanting comes two weeks after his sister Zahira Sheikh, another key witness in the same case, retracted her statement at a news conference in Baroda, claiming she was pressured into making false statements against the accused.
Zahira Sheikh told the court that he and his family members, while they were staying in Bombay, had been threatened by Teesta Setalvad, one of India's top human rights activists.
In April, the Supreme Court had ordered a retrial of the Best Bakery case in Bombay, India's financial hub, because Zahira said she had been intimidated by supporters of the accused during the original case.
Before Sheikh, four witnesses have testified - some have recognized and identified by name the accused men in court. -Reuters
