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BHUBANESWAR: A fast-track court in Kandhmal has acquitted 16 persons accused in the ethno-communal riots that swept the southern Orissa districtlast year, killing over 40, rendering thousands homeless and damaging over 100 churches.
The fast-track court (II), set up exclusively to deal with the riot cases, on Friday exonerated 16 persons of Gocchapada area on grounds of lack of evidence. The charges against the 16 ranged from murder, setting a police station on fire, possession of arms and unlawful assembly, official sources said. Those acquitted hail from different villages in Gochapada area, which witnessed an attack on the local police station in September, 2008.