NEW YORK: A US court has issued summons against the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his role in the anti-Muslim massacre in Gujarat during 2002 when he was Chief Minister of the state.
The case filed by the American Justice Center, a non-profit human rights organisation identified among the plaintiffs “two survivors of the horrific and organised violence of Gujarat 2002”, and called for a response from Modi based on the Alien Tort Claims Act and the Torture Victim Protection Act.
The summons issued by the Federal Court of Southern District of New York requires Modi to respond within 21 days after it is served.
The Indian prime minister will arrives for a five-day visit in New York on Friday where he will address the 69th session of the UN General Assembly before heading to Washington for talks with the US President Barack Obama.
It may be recalled that at least 1,000 people, most of them Muslims, died in a wave of reprisal attacks across Gujarat after a train carrying Hindu pilgrims was set on fire in February 2002.
