The Supreme Court on Thursday posted for final hearing on May 6 and 7, appeals by the Gujarat government and several other convicts in the February 27, 2002, burning of the S-6 coach of the Sabarmati Express at the Godhra railway station, causing the death of 59 passengers.
Posting the matter for final hearing on May 6 and 7, a bench of Justice JK Maheshwari and Justice Rajesh Bindal told the advocates appearing for the Gujarat government and the convicts to file a compilation of their submissions in the case.
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The bench asked senior advocate Sanjay Hegde, appearing for one of the convicts, to file a revised compilation of his submissions on charges against the convict, the findings of the courts below, and his arguments supported by material on record to counter them by May 3.
The bench also asked the advocates appearing for other convicts and the Gujarat government, which has appealed against the High Court order commuting the death sentence to life imprisonment for 11 convicts, to file a revised preliminary compilation on similar lines.
The bench said, “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.”
The top court Registry was also asked to take orders, if necessary, from the Chief Justice of India to this effect.
A batch of criminal appeals was filed by the convicts in the burning of S-6 coach of Sabarmati Express at the Godhra railway station on February 27, against their conviction by the trial court and subsequently by the Gujarat High Court. They have challenged the October 2017 verdict of the High Court, which had upheld the conviction of several accused.
The Gujarat government had also approached the top court seeking death penalty for the 11 convicts whose sentences in the case were commuted to life imprisonment by the High Court.
The High Court had upheld the 31 convictions in the case and commuted the death penalties of the 11 convicts to life imprisonment in the case.
The incident took place on February 27, 2002, when the S-6 coach of the Sabarmati Express was burnt at the Godhra Railway station, causing the death of 59 passengers, which triggered riots across the state.
In March 2011, the trial court had convicted 31 persons, of whom 20 were awarded life sentences and 11 were given the death penalty. It had acquitted 63 people.