Zaheera to appear in court on March 29

A sessions court on Monday allowed Zaheera Shaikh, prime witness in the Best Bakery case, to reply on March 29 to show cause notices issued to her and others for making false averments during the retrial, and extended her custody for nine days in another matter in which the Supreme Court sentenced her to one year jail for contempt of court.

Zaheera was produced before Sessions Judge Abhay Thipsay and her brother Nasibullah also appeared in response to show cause notices issued to them for making false averments during the retrial in Mumbai court.

Complete Coverage: Godhra Carnage

Both asked for time to reply to show cause notices for perjury, pleading that they did not have the copy of the Best Bakery judgement pronounced on February 24 when the judge had pulled them up for making false averments during the retrial.

The Judge told Zaheera and her brother that they would be furnished a copy of the judgement on March 27 and asked them to appear along with their family members on March 29 to answer to the show cause notices issued to them. Zaheera's mother Sahrinussa and sister Sahira, who were also issued show cause notices, did not appear but moved an application through Nasibullah urging for exemption from appearance.

The court exempted the duo from appearance on Monday but asked them to appear on March 29. The court was told that Nafitullah, another brother of Zaheera, who was also issued show cause notice for perjury, had passed away. The death certificate submitted by the prosecution was taken on record.