Ahmedabad Serial Blasts Case Verdict

- Charvi

Date: 19 February 2022

On Friday, i.e., 18 February 2022, special court judge A.R. Patel pronounced the sentence for
the 2008 Ahmedabad serial blasts in which 56 persons were killed and over 200 injured. The
court awarded death penalty to 38 convicts and sentenced 11 others to life imprisonment until
death. On 8 February 2022, nearly 14 years after bombs went all across the city, including at
a hospital, the court delivered its verdict, acquitting 28 accused.

The convicts were members of the Indian Mujahideen, an outfit operated by the operatives of
the banned organisation, the Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI). They were trained
to carry out blasts in Ahmedabad. These blasts were planned as “retribution” for the 2002
riots in Gujarat.

While the prosecution sought capital punishment for all 49 convicts, the defence urged the
court to consider their socio-economic background. In the over 7,000-page judgment, the
court termed the case “rarest of rare”. The court also awarded compensation of ₹1 lakh for
the kin of those who died in the blasts; ₹50,000 to those who were seriously injured; and
₹25,000 to those who received minor injuries.

These 38 persons were convicted under the Indian Penal Code’s (IPC) Sections 302 (murder)
and 120B (criminal conspiracy), and the provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention)
Act (UAPA). Eleven others were held guilty for criminal conspiracy, and under various
UAPA sections.

It is important to note that this is the highest number of convicts awarded death sentence in a
criminal case. Earlier, the highest number of 26 convicts were awarded death penalty in the
assassination case of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil
Eelam (LTTE) operatives.