In a significant ruling on Friday, the Supreme Court granted bail to eight individuals convicted in the 1987 Hashimpura massacre, in which 38 people were killed by personnel from the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC). The decision was made by a bench led by Justices Abhay S Oka and Augustine George Masih.
The Hashimpura massacre, one of the most harrowing episodes of communal violence in independent India, occurred on May 22, 1987. During heightened communal tensions, PAC personnel from the 41st Battalion’s ‘C-Company’ allegedly detained around 50 Muslim men from Hashimpura, a locality in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh. The detainees were subsequently taken to the city’s outskirts, shot, and their bodies were thrown into a canal. Out of those detained, 38 succumbed to the shootings, leaving only five survivors who lived to describe the ordeal.
Senior Advocate Amit Anand Tiwari, representing four of the convicts—Sami Ullah, Niranjan Lal, Mahesh Prasad, and Jaipal Singh—argued before the court. He emphasized that these individuals have been behind bars for over six years following their conviction by the Delhi High Court, which overturned their initial acquittal by the trial court.
During the legal proceedings, it was highlighted that the appellants’ behavior had been exemplary, both during the trial and the subsequent appeal process. The counsel for the appellants also contended that the High Court’s decision to reverse the trial court’s acquittal was based on flawed grounds, prompting the Supreme Court to grant bail to the eight individuals with pending bail applications.
