Ahmedabad, April 12: Hope rose like a phoenix in their hearts when they heard of the Supreme Court’s order for re-investigation of the Best Bakery case and its retrial in a Maharashtra court. For victims of Gulbarg and Naroda-Patiya massacre, the apex court’s landmark ruling has driven away all doubts and fears. Today, along with Zaheera, they too expect to receive justice one day.

‘‘It is a landmark order which will prevent governments, administrators and police officers from behaving the way they did during riots here,’’ says Tanvir Zaferi, son of Ehsan Zaferi who died in the Gulbarg massacre. ‘Happy and satisfied’ with the ruling, Tanvir says, ‘‘The State Government acted insensitively not only during riots, but also during the proceedings of riot cases. It never opposed or demanded the withdrawal of the bail granted to the accused. Now, all this is going to change for the better, The bureaucrats of other states will be neutral and unbiased. This alone will help the riot victims.’’

The SC order rekindled hope for a fair trial in Mohammad Hussain Munirbhai Shaikh, whose wife, mother-in-law, niece and nephew were killed during the Naroda-Patiya massacre. ‘‘I had prayed for a fair trial. Despite several threats, I went on to become one of the witnesses as I want to pursue the case till the guilty are punished,’’ says Mohammad, who lives with his two sons and brother’s family at Jawan Nagar in Naroda-Patiya.

When the courts in Vadodara had let off the 12 accused in the Best Bakery case, Mohammad and other witnesses came under a lot of flak. ‘‘We have been at the receiving end and can understand why the witnesses may have turned hostile. Suddenly, it seemed that our case would also go the same way,’’ he says, recollecting those tense moments. Coming back to a present filled with hope, he says, ‘‘We had lost hope as it is most likely that the same government will come to power again. Then, one of the other witnesses heard about the apex court’s ruling over the radio and rushed to us with the news. Since then, we are all smiles.’’

Noorjahan Abdulkadir Shaikh, who has been living in Vatva with her four children after losing her husband in the 2002 riots, says: ‘‘The Naroda-Patiya massacre is just as crucial as the Best Bakery case, probably more as the number of victims are higher. If that case has been shifted to another State, for sure, even this one will be shifted, increasing our chances to get justice.’’

‘‘Even two years after the Naroda-Patiya incident, not a single accused is in jail. The trial has not begun yet. Obviously this can be possible only due to the government’s influence. The less chance it gets to interfere, the better,’’ she says.

‘‘When the case was handled by the lower courts here, we knew what the outcome would be. The accused had their say. Now, we know that if we do not get a fair trial here, we can request for a retrial elsewhere,’’ says Apsara Kabir Ali Shaikh, who lost her elder daughter during the riots.

‘‘We have seen our families burning, our children suffering, the Government and the police laughing. Now, we can hope for help beyond the State Government and the courts here,’’ says Apsara, whose children — Shahjahan and Shahrukh — still bear burn marks on their bodies.

Apsara believes that Zaheera Sheikh, the main witness of the Best Bakery case, has set an example for all riot victims. ‘‘There is nothing to fear now. Justice might get delayed a bit, but taking a cue from the Bakery case, the Government will be careful during the Naroda-Patiya trial,’’ she adds.

However, for Jubedabanu Abdullah Shaikh, who lost also her husband in the Naroda-Patiya massacre, the order mean more running around. ‘‘Like Best Bakery victims, we also have been running around for two years. When the accused are influential and the police have not collected enough evidence in both cases, on what basis will the court pronounce its verdict?’’ she asks.