The Hindu : Front Page : Best Bakery trial: eyewitness grilled

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, Oct 29, 2004

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Best Bakery trial: eyewitness grilled

By Our Special Correspondent

MUMBAI, OCT. 28. The defence today grilled Toufel Shaikh Siddiqui, the first eyewitness in the Best Bakery case, for the entire day, and tried to point out several contradictions in his recorded statement to the police and what he told the court over the last two days.

Yesterday, Toufel, a young bakery employee, had identified seven of the accused in court, as being part of the mob which burnt down the bakery killing 14 people.

Toufel, in response to each of the "contradictions" pointed out by defence counsel Adik Shirodkar and his associates, kept repeating that he may have told the police what he said in court but the police may not have recorded it in his statement.

Mr. Shirodkar said in his original statement to the police, Toufel had said that a mob of 1,000-1,200 had come towards the bakery. However, Toufel had earlier told the court that this number was between 400-500. The defence also pointed out that Toufel had failed to mention that the mob was armed with swords and torches.

They also said Toufel had not told the police that when they were attacked, two people, Kauser Ali, his brother- in-law and another man, Lula, were left behind, while the rest made their way to the terrace.

`Read Toufel's statement'

When Mr. Shirodkar questioned Toufel about the time the mob is said to have reached the bakery, Additional Sessions Judge, Abhay Thipsay, who is hearing the re-trial, told the defence that omissions have to be significant and useful to the decision in the case. The proper thing would be to read out Toufel's entire statement to him, he suggested.

Toufel was then asked if the rioters asked them to come down from the terrace. He said "despite our requests the mob did not let them come down." However, in his police statement, he had said that, "We told the mob to let us come down and we went down of our own accord."

Finally, Toufel told the court that he and the others, including Zaheera and her family, did not go down from the terrace of their own accord but they had come down with the help of two ladders tied together.

The defence also asked him if he had told the police that after they had come down, the mob tied up the hands and feet of Zaheera, her mother and sister. Toufel once again repeated that he may have told the police but they had not recorded it. The cross-examination will continue tomorrow.

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