A two-member bench of the Gujarat High Court on Tuesday delivered its important verdict in one of the biggest death penalty cases in Indian judicial history, awarding death sentence to 38 convicts by the Sessions Court. Apart from this, the life imprisonment awarded to 11 convicts has been upheld. On this, the reaction of Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind President Maulana Arshad Madani has come.
He has described this decision of the court as unexpected and disappointing. He said that this decision of Gujarat High Court will now be challenged in the Supreme Court. To save the accused from the gallows, the services of eminent criminal law expert lawyers of the country will be taken and their case will be fought with full determination. We have full confidence that these youth will get justice from the Supreme Court, Inshallah.”
Gujarat High Court Judge A.Y. The division bench of Kogje and Sameer Dave had reserved its verdict in this very important case after hearing it daily for almost a year, which was pronounced on Tuesday. The bench also heard the appeals filed by the convicts against the trial court’s decision.
During this period, out of total 49 accused, Maharashtra Legal Aid Committee of Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind in collaboration with Jamiat Ulema Ahmedabad (Gujarat) provided legal aid to 39 accused. All the accused are in jail since 2008. The investigating agencies had arrested them from various states of the country including Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Kerala, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh.
On behalf of the accused, the country’s eminent criminal law expert advocates, retired High Court Judge Naga Mutthu, retired High Court Judge Abhay Thipsay, senior Supreme Court advocates Nityarama Krishnan, Mihir Desai, Yog Mohat Choudhary, Hriday Booch, Tejas Barot, Aseem Pandya, Somnath Vats and other advocates had presented their side. Despite this, the High Court kept the decision of the Sessions Court intact.
Madani told first priority
Reacting to this decision, Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind President Maulana Arshad Madani said that at present his first priority is to get a stay on the death sentence from the Supreme Court. For this, lawyers have been asked to prepare necessary legal strategy. He said that there have been many cases in which harsh punishment was given by the lower courts, but after appeal in the High Court or the Supreme Court, the concerned accused got justice.
Madani gave example of Akshardham temple attack
Giving the example of the Akshardham temple attack case, Maulana Madani said that in that case, the lower court had sentenced three people including Mufti Abdul Qayyum to death and four others to life imprisonment. Gujarat High Court had also upheld that decision, but with the legal assistance of Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind, when the case reached the Supreme Court, all the accused were honorably acquitted. The Supreme Court had also strongly criticized the Gujarat Police for implicating innocent people on terrorism charges.
Expectation of relief from Supreme Court
Expressing confidence, Maulana Arshad Madani said that he is hopeful that the accused will get relief from the Supreme Court in this important case also. Madani said that even before this, in 11 cases in which death penalty was awarded by the lower court and the High Court, Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind had advocated for them and none of the accused was allowed to be hanged. Expressing confidence, he said that he is hopeful that in this case also there will be success in saving the accused from death penalty.
Many people got justice due to the effective action of Jamiat
Maulana Madani said that in the case of attack on the American Consulate, seven people were sentenced to death, while in another case in Mumbai, an accused was given death sentence by the lower court. Alhamdulillah, effective legal advocacy by Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind resulted in honorable acquittal of seven accused, sentence of two accused was commuted to seven years imprisonment.
The death sentence of two others was commuted to life imprisonment. He said that just as justice was given in other cases, similarly there is full hope of getting justice in this case too, Inshallah.
High Court’s decision shocking: Halimullah Qasmi
At the same time, after the decision of Ahmedabad High Court on Tuesday, Jamiat Ulema Maharashtra President Maulana Halimullah Qasmi said in his statement that the decision of the High Court is extremely shocking and it will be challenged in the Supreme Court. In this regard, a joint meeting of the family members and lawyers of the accused will also be organized soon.
What are the charges against the accused?
He said that the accused whose death sentence has been upheld are residents of Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Bihar and Delhi. They are accused of illegally collecting explosive material and carrying out the bomb blast, in which 56 people died and more than 200 were injured. The accused were also accused of being members of banned organizations Indian Mujahideen and SIMI (Students Islamic Movement of India) and wanted to avenge the 2002 Godhra riots.
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