The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected objections raised by convicts in the 2002 Godhra train burning case that a two-judge bench could not adjudicate their appeals, citing that the Gujarat High Court had already commuted the original death penalties to life imprisonment.
A bench comprising Justices J.K. Maheshwari and Aravind Kumar began the final hearing on a batch of appeals, including those filed by the Gujarat government challenging the commutation of death sentences, and those by convicts seeking to overturn their convictions.
Senior advocate Sanjay Hegde, appearing for two convicts, argued that in light of the Supreme Court’s Constitution Bench decision in the 2014 Mohammad Arif alias Ashfaq judgment, cases involving the death penalty must be heard by a three-judge bench. “Suppose, this bench of two judges decides to award death penalty to some accused, then it has to be re-argued before another bench of three judges,” Hegde contended.
However, the bench firmly rejected the submission, noting that the 2014 ruling and the applicable Supreme Court rules require a three-judge bench only when a high court has either confirmed or awarded the death penalty. “The Gujarat High Court, in the present case, commuted the death penalty of 11 convicts into life imprisonment and did not award the death penalty,” Justice Maheshwari clarified. “The trial court had awarded the death penalty. The objection is repelled,” the bench concluded.
The case arises from the February 27, 2002, incident in which 59 people were killed when the S-6 coach of the Sabarmati Express was set on fire at Godhra, sparking statewide communal riots. In its October 2017 judgment, the Gujarat High Court upheld the conviction of 31 individuals and commuted the death sentence of 11 convicts to life imprisonment.
The Supreme Court had earlier stated that the final hearing would commence on May 6 and 7. While the Gujarat government is appealing against the commutation of the 11 death sentences, several convicts are challenging the high court’s affirmation of their convictions.
