The accused have been charged with criminal conspiracy and murder in burning of the S-6 coach of the train on 27 February 2002 near Godhra, about 125 km from Ahmedabad in which 59 people were killed
Ahmedabad: Thirty one people were on Tuesday convicted and 63 others, including the main accused Maulvi Umarji, were acquitted by a special court here in the 2002 Godhra train burning incident that left 59 people dead and triggered violence in the western Indian state of Gujarat that had claimed the lives of over 1,200 people, mainly Muslims, reports PTI.
The sentence would be pronounced on 25th February after arguments on the quantum of punishment by the special court that accepted the theory of conspiracy behind the burning of the coach of Sabarmati Express carrying kar sevaks returning from Ayodhya in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.
The court acquitted prime accused Maulana Umarji, Godhra town municipality chief Mohammad Abdul Rahim Kalota, Nannu Mian Chowdhary and Mohammad Ansari while other key accused Haji Billa and Rajjak Kurkur were convicted.
"Special court judge P R Patel has convicted 31 accused while acquitting 63 others," public prosecutor JM Panchal said after the verdict inside the Sabarmati jail.
"On 25th February, there will be a hearing on the point of sentence, and after that quantum of punishment will be pronounced," Mr Panchal said.
"The conspiracy theory has been accepted by the court," he said.
Scientific evidence, statement of witnesses, circumstantial and documentary evidence placed on record formed the basis of the judgement.
The trial conducted inside the Sabarmati Central Jail here began in June 2009 with the framing of charges against 94 accused in the carnage that had triggered widespread communal riots in Gujarat.
The accused have been charged with criminal conspiracy and murder in burning of the S-6 coach of the train on 27 February 2002 near Godhra, about 125 km from here in which 59 people were killed.
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