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It has been 33 years since the night of 22 May, 1987 when nearly 50 Muslim men from Hashimpura, a settlement in Meerut were rounded up and packed into the rear of a truck of the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC), an armed police of Uttar Pradesh. It was the blessed month of Ramadan and all the Muslims were fasting.

That night 42 of those on board the truck were killed in two massacres in neighbouring Ghaziabad district. One along the Upper Ganga canal near Muradnagar, the other along the Hindon canal in Makanpur, on the border with Delhi.

The cops had returned home after dumping the dead bodies into the canal. A few days later, the dead bodies were found floating in the canal and a case of murder was registered. 

Vir Bahadur Singh was the chief minister of Uttar Pradesh and Rajiv Gandhi was the prime minister of India when this incident took place. 

Not much has changed for the survivors and the relatives of the victims even today. The wounds are still fresh. Hashimpura remains devoid of basic municipal amenities, the erring silence on the narrow lanes of the locality amid the activities of a daily life speaks of the horror of the fateful day in 1987.

The massacre was the result of one among the many outcomes of the decision taken by the Rajiv Gandhi government to open the locks of Babri Masjid. After a month of rioting, the situation was tense in various parts of Meerut, and a lot spilled over in the nearby areas.

Timeline

May 22, 1987

Nearly 50 Muslims picked up by the PAC personnel from Hashimpura village in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh.
Victims later shot and bodies thrown into a canal. 42 persons declared dead.

1988

UP government orders CB-CID probe in the case.

February 1994

CB-CID submits inquiry report indicting over 60 PAC and police personnel of all ranks.

May 20, 1996

Charge sheet filed against 19 accused before Chief Judicial Magistrate, Ghaziabad by CB-CID of Uttar Pradesh police. 161 people listed as witnesses.

September 2002

Case transferred to Delhi by the Supreme Court on a petition by the families of victims and survivors.

July 2006

Delhi court frames charges of murder, attempt to murder, tampering with evidence and conspiracy under the IPC against 17 accused.

March 8, 2013

Trial court dismisses Subramanian Swamy's plea seeking probe into the alleged role of P Chidambaram, then Minister of State for Home, in the matter.

January 22, 2015

Trial court reserves judgement.

March 21, 2015

Court acquits 16 surviving accused giving them benefit of doubt regarding their identity.

May 18, 2015

Trial court decision challenged in the Delhi HC by the victims' families and eyewitnesses who survived the incident.

May 29, 2015

HC issues notice to the 16 PAC personnel on Uttar Pradesh government's appeal against the trial court verdict.

December 2015

National Human Rights Commission is impleaded in the matter. NHRC also seeks further probe into the massacre.

February 17, 2016

HC tags Swamy's appeal with the other petitions in the matter.

September 6, 2018

Delhi HC reserves verdict in the case.

October 31, 2018

Delhi HC convicts 16 former PAC personnel for life after finding them guilty of the murder of 42 people.

Bengaluru, Mar 23: The Karnataka Government will impose stricter restrictions till March 31 to tackle the spread of COVID-19, Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa said on Monday.

''While all non-essential government establishments will also be closed from today, we are discussing on whether there should be a total shutdown similar to what was in place on Sunday during 'Janata Curfew'. We will take a call on this after discussing this with Opposition leaders by evening,'' he added.

Addressing press persons after a meeting with doctors and experts from private hospitals, the Chief Minister said free food will be served to the poor in Indira Canteens all through the day.

Mangaluru, Jan 24: Aditya Rao, who was arrested for planting Improvised explosive device (IED) at Mangaluru airport on January 20, was brought to the airport on Friday for recreation of the crime scene as part of the investigation process.

Yesterday, one more case was registered against Rao in connection with a hoax call to the terminal manager of the airport on January 20, police said.

"One more case has been registered against Aditya Rao at Bajpe Police station for a hoax call to the terminal manager of Mangaluru International Airport on January 20," said PS Harsha, Mangalore Commissioner of Police on Thursday.

Earlier, Harsha informed that Rao, who surrendered before the Bengaluru Police, is now in the custody of Mangaluru Police.

"Our investigation team arrested Aditya Rao in Bengaluru in connection with the planting of an explosive device at Mangaluru airport. We produced the accused before Bengaluru's first JMFC court and the court issued a transit warrant," Harsha said.

"We have brought him to Mangaluru from Bengaluru and now the accused is in our custody. Our investigation team will interrogate him. We will investigate all aspects. He will be produced before Mangaluru 6th JMFC Court," he added.

Rao hails from Udupi and has engineering and MBA degrees.

According to the police, the IED was recovered from a bag at the Mangaluru airport. It was later defused in an open field by the personnel of the bomb disposal squad.