Gulberg massacre: Judgement on quantum of punishment deferred till June 10

Ahmedabad: The Ahmedabad Court today deferred the judgement till Friday on the quantum of sentence for the 24 convicts in the Gulberg massacre case. During the hearing, the defence lawyer Abhay Bhardawaj said that the eight witnesses have not been able to recognize the convicts and on this basis, minimum punishment should be given. The lawyer also said that “the accused should be given a chance to reform as they don't have past criminal records”. "The prosecution needs to prove if the accused will be a threat to society if they step out of jail," he added. The prosecution has sought nothing less than death sentence or jail term till death for all the convicts while the defence lawyers contested that the incident was spontaneous and there were enough provocations for it. Out of the 66 accused, six had died during the trial. Of the 24 convicted today, 11 have been charged with murder, while 13 others have been convicted for lesser offences. The 24 convicted includes VHP leader Atul Vaidya. The quantum of punishment for those convicted in the case will be delivered on June 6.