Public Prosecutor Misidentified as Accused Behind 2002 Godhra Train Burning Case

An image of a man is going viral to claim that it shows the main convict in the 2002 train burning case that happened in Godhra, Gujarat.

According to the claims, this image shows Rafiq Hussain Bhatuk who owns two petrol pumps and was absconding for 14 years before getting caught.

(Similar claims can be seen here and here.)

What's the truth?: This image shows RC Kodekar, who served as the prosecutor counsel in the 2002 Godhra train burning case.

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How did we find out the truth?: We performed a reverse image search on the image which led us to a YouTube video shared by Indian news agency Asian News International (ANI) Bharat.

• This video was shared on 3 July 2022 and shows RC Kodekar, Special Public Prosecutor, talking about the Godhra burning train incident.

• He also said, "Rafiq Hussain Bhatuk, the accused in Godhra train coach fire, who was absconding for 19 years and was arrested by Godhra police and has been given the punishment of life imprisonment under conspiracy to murder by Godhra Sessions Court."

• We also found ANI's post on X (formerly Twitter) from 2 July 2022 about this news with Kodekar's photo.

• Following this, ANI also issued a clarification about the confusion between Kodekar and Bhatuk.

• They clarified that this image shows Kodekar and not the convict.

CLARIFICATION: This is to clarify that the picture in this earlier tweet is of RC Kodekar, Special Public Prosecutor NOT criminal Rafiq Bhatuk. A viral post on 'X' has posted ANI's picture with incorrect identification. https://t.co/uSu9kT9z0q

— ANI (@ANI) February 16, 2024

The convict's photo: We found a report by Hindustan Times from 4 July 2022 which carried an image of Bhatuk.

Conclusion: A lawyer has been misidentified as the convict in the Godhra train burning case from 2002.

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