India, July 29 -- The Gujarat high court has acquitted three men who had been convicted in 2006 for rioting and arson during the 2002 post-Godhra violence in Anand town, holding that their conviction was not based on reliable and corroborative evidence.

In a 98-page verdict delivered on July 28, justice Gita Gopi cited inconsistencies in how the accused were identified and named and held that there was no credible evidence linking the three to the offences.

The three men, Sachinbhai Patel, Mitul Patel, and Mitesh alias Dhobi, had been convicted by a First Fast Track Court at Anand and sentenced to five years of rigorous imprisonment under Section 436 of the Indian Penal Code for mischief by fire (arson), along with shorter concurrent se...