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Excerpts from the historic Supreme Court judgement on the Best Bakery Case, specifically, the case of Zahira Sheikh versus the Gujarat government. The judgement was passed by an apex court bench of Justices Arijit Pasayat and Doraiswamy Raju, April 12, 2004
 The State has a definite role to play in protecting the witnesses, to start with at least in sensitive cases involving those in power, who have political patronage and could wield muscle and money power, to avert trial getting tainted and derailed and truth becoming a casualty. As a protector of its citizens it has to ensure that during a trial in Court the witness could safely depose truth without any fear of being haunted by those against whom he has deposed...
...The Courts have to take a participatory role in a trial. They are not expected to be tape recorders to record whatever is being stated by the witnesses... Even if the prosecutor is remiss in some ways, it can control the proceedings effectively so that ultimate objective, that is, truth, is arrived at... The prosecutor who does not act fairly and acts more like a counsel for the defence is a liability to the fair judicial system, and Courts could not also play into the hands of such prosecuting agency showing indifference or adopting an attitude of total aloofness.
...The entire approach of the (Gujarat) High Court suffers from serious infirmities, its conclusions are lopsided and lack proper or judicious application of mind...
...It is no doubt true that the accused persons have been acquitted by the Trial Court and the acquittal has been upheld, but if the acquittal is unmerited and based on tainted evidence, tailored investigation, unprincipled prosecutor and perfunctory trial and evidence of threatened/terrorised witness, it is no acquittal in the eye of law and no sanctity or credibility can be attached and given to the socalled findings. It seems to be nothing but a travesty of truth, fraud on legal process and the resultant decisions of courts - c oram non judis and non est. There is, therefore, every justification to call for interference in these appeals...
...In a country like ours with heterogeneous religions and a multiracial and multilingual society which necessitates protection against discrimination on the ground of caste or religion, taking lives of persons belonging to one or the other religion is bound to have dangerous repercussions on the society at large and may tend to encourage fissiparous elements to undermine the unity and security of the nation on account of internal disturbances. It strikes at the very root of an orderly society which the founding fathers of our Constitution dreamt of...
When the ghastly killings take place in the land of Mahatma Gandhi it raises a very pertinent question - whether some people have become so bankrupt in their ideology that they have deviated from everything that was so dear to him. When large numbers of people, including innocent and helpless children and women are killed in a diabolic manner it brings disgrace to the entire society. Criminals have no religion. No religion teaches violence and cruelty based religion is no religion at all, but a mere cloak to usurp power by fanning ill-feeling and playing on the feelings aroused thereby. The golden thread passing through every religion is love and compassion. The fanatics who spread violence in the name of religion are worse than terrorists and more dangerous than an alien enemy.
The little drops of humaneness which jointly make humanity a cherished desire of mankind had seemingly dried up when the perpetrators of the crime had burnt alive helpless women and innocent children. Was it their fault that (they) were born in the houses of persons belonging to a particular community? The still... (sad) music of humanity had become silent when it was forgotten by those who were responsible for the killings...
If one cursorily glances through the records of the case, one gets a feeling that the justice delivery system was being taken for a ride and literally allowed to be abused, misused and mutilated by subterfuge... The public prosecutor appears to have acted more as a defence counsel than one whose duty was to present the truth before the Court. The Court in turn appeared to be a silent spectator, mute to the manipulations and preferred to be indifferent to sacrilege being committed to justice. The role of the state government also leaves much to be desired... Criminal trials should not be reduced to mock trials, or shadow boxing or fixed trials...
Those who are responsible for protecting life and properties and ensuring that investigation is fair and proper seem to have shown no real anxiety. A large number of people had lost their lives. Whether the accused persons were really assailants or not could have been established by a fair and impartial investigation. The modern day 'Neroes' were looking elsewhere when Best Bakery and innocent children and helpless women were burning, and were probably deliberating how the perpetrators of the crime can be saved or protected. Law and justice become flies in the hands of these "wanton boys". When fences start to swallow the crops, no scope will be left for survival of law and order or truth and justice. Public order as well as public interest become martyrs and monuments... .
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