The Supreme Court on Friday issued notice to Gujarat government, in a petition filed by National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) seeking fresh trial outside the state in five riot cases, including the Best Bakery case.

A trial court has acquitted twenty-one accused in the Bakery case earlier.

The court directed the Gujarat government to provide protection to the victims and family members involved in the riot cases mentioned by the NHRC.

The court treated NHRC petition as a Public Interest Litigation and said it will monitor the trial of the cases but said it cannot give any direction at present without looking into the nature of the appeal filed by the Gujarat government in the state high court on Thursday.