Naroda Patiya case: Gujarat HC likely to pronounce verdict

A division bench of the court comprising justice Harsha Devani and justice A. S. Supehiya concluded the hearing and reserved the order in the case last August.

Ahmedabad, (Gujarat) [India], Apr 20 (ANI): The Gujarat High Court is likely to pronounce its verdict on appeals in 2002 Naroda Patiya riot case in which 97 Muslims were massacred after Godhra riots. A division bench of the court comprising justice Harsha Devani and justice A. S. Supehiya concluded the hearing and reserved the order in the case last August. In 2012, a special court for Special Investigation Team (SIT) cases had sentenced 32 people to life imprisonment. The convicts also included Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) minister Maya Kodnani who was awarded 28 years of imprisonment and Bajrang Dal leader Babu Bajrangi who was sentenced to life imprisonment till death.

Apart from this, seven accused were given enhanced life imprisonment of 21 years and the remaining were given simple life imprisonment for 14 years. All the convicts had appealed against their conviction in the High Court. Around 58 people lost their lives when the S-6 coach of Sabarmati Express was torched at the Godhra Railway Station on February 27, 2002. Following the incident, on February 28 the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal declared Gujarat Bandh. A total of 97 people were killed by rioters in Ahmedabad's Naroda Patiya area on this day.