The Supreme Court said Today (April 24) will begin final hearings on May 6–7 in the 2002 Godhra train burning case. Gujarat seeks death penalty for 11 convicts as others challenge their convictions.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court of India today said that it will begin the final hearing on May 6 and 7, 2025, in the appeals related to the 2002 Godhra train burning case. These appeals have been filed by the Gujarat government and some of the people who were found guilty earlier.
This important decision came from a bench of two judges, Justice JK Maheshwari and Justice Rajesh Bindal.
They were hearing the matter and gave some clear instructions to the lawyers involved in the case. The judges asked senior advocate Sanjay Hegde, who is representing one of the people convicted, to submit a fresh set of documents.
These documents must include a detailed summary in sections, showing the charges against the person, the court decisions given earlier, and his arguments with proof from the case records.
The deadline for this submission is May 3.
The Supreme Court also gave a similar instruction to the other lawyers – those who are representing the Gujarat government and other convicts. They too must prepare and file updated and structured documents for the case.
“Hearing of this matter would require at least two weeks. First, we will take it up on May 6 and 7 for the whole day and no other cases will be taken on these dates unless specifically asked by this court,”
-Justice Maheshwari clearly said in the order.
The bench also told the Supreme Court registry to take permission from the Chief Justice of India, if needed, to make sure no other cases are listed on those two days.
The case is related to a very serious incident that happened on February 27, 2002. On that day, a coach named S-6 of the Sabarmati Express train was burnt at the Godhra railway station in Gujarat. Because of this incident, 59 people lost their lives, and later, large-scale riots broke out in the state.
After this, many people were arrested and later punished. Several appeals have been filed in the Supreme Court to challenge the Gujarat High Court’s judgment from October 2017. In that judgment, the High Court had confirmed the conviction of many of the accused but changed the punishment of 11 people from death sentence to life imprisonment.
In February 2023, the Gujarat government told the Supreme Court that it wanted to ask for the death penalty again for those 11 convicts whose death sentences were changed to life imprisonment by the High Court.
Earlier, when the Supreme Court was hearing the case, the lawyer for the Gujarat state explained that the trial court had given the death sentence to 11 people and life imprisonment to 20 others.
The counsel had said, the High Court had confirmed the punishment of 31 people in total, but changed the death sentences of 11 convicts to life imprisonment.
Now, the Gujarat government has filed an appeal to ask the Supreme Court to bring back the death penalty for those 11 people. On the other hand, many of the convicted people have also filed appeals, asking the top court to cancel or change the decision of the High Court which had upheld their convictions.
The final decision from the Supreme Court is expected to be very important and may bring closure to a long-running legal battle related to one of the most tragic events in the country’s recent history. The hearing on May 6 and 7 will be crucial for both the state and the convicts involved.
CASE TITLE:
Abdul Raheman Dhantiya/Kankatto/Jamburo vs State of Gujarat.
Criminal Appeal 517/2018 and Others.
Would You Like Assistance In Drafting A Legal Notice Or Complaint?
CLICK HERE
Click Here to Read Our Reports on Godhra Train Burning
FOLLOW US ON YOUTUBE FOR MORE LEGAL UPDATES
