HC sentences 11 men to life in 2002 post-Godhra riot case

Setting aside the trial court order acquitting the accused, the Gujarat High Court today sentenced eleven persons to life imprisonment for the murder of two persons during a 2002 post-Godhra riot at Meda Adraj village in Mehsana district.
A division bench of justices Anant Dave and B N Karia awarded the accused "life imprisonment with remission", allowing the state Government to release them after they have served 14 years.
The HC also imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 on each of them and granted them ten weeks to surrender.
Last month, the High Court had held 11 out of the 27 accused guilty for murdering a father-daughter duo from the minority community at Meda Adraj.

The eleven convicted persons are: Mukesh Amritlal Patel, Narendra Chimanlal Patel, Dinesh Jaswantbhai Patel, Kirit Somabhai Patel, Kirit Chandubhai Patel, Girish Ambalal Patel, Girish Chunnilal Patel, Mukesh Mahendrabhai Patel, Nilesh Naranbhai Patel, Janak Rameshbhai Patel and Mukesh Somabhai Patel.
They were convicted under sections 302 (murder), 148 and 149 (unlawful assembly) and 436 (mischief by fire) of the Indian Penal Code.

A fast-track court in Mehsana on June 14, 2005, acquitted all the 27 accused for killing Kalu Miyan Saiyed and his daughter Hasina Bibi on March 3, 2002, in the aftermath of train burning incident at Godhra in which 58 persons died.

According to the prosecution, a mob of around 200 people surrounded the victims who had taken shelter in the house of Joitaram Prajapati and burnt them alive. There were six eye-witnesses in the case.
Kumar was acquitted by a trial court in 2013 in the case
pertaining to the killing of five Sikhs by a mob in Delhi Cantonment's Raj Nagar area during the 1984 riots.
While acquitting Kumar, the trial court had held five accused guilty and awarded them varying jail terms for being part of the mob that killed the Sikhs.
CBI had moved the high court challenging the acquittal of Kumar in a case relating to the killing of Kehar Singh, Gurpreet Singh, Raghuvender Singh, Narender Pal Singh and Kuldeep Singh, all belonging to the same family, by a mob during the riots.

Ex-councillor Balwan Khokkar, Girdhari Lal and former naval officer Captain Bhagmal were given life term, while the Yadav and Khokkar, were given three-year jail term each for lesser roles. They have also challenged their conviction in the high court.
Besides CBI, the victims' family members Jagdish and Nirpreet Kaur had also challenged the trial court verdict.
The case against Kumar, a former Lok Sabha MP from Outer Delhi, and others was registered in 2005 on a recommendation by Justice G T Nanavati Commission. CBI had filed two charge sheets against him and other accused in January 2010.