SC rejects Godhra convicts’ plea against hearing by 2-judge Bench

The Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected certain convicts’ contention that a two-judge Bench cannot hear their appeals against conviction as the matter pertained to the award of death penalty to 11 accused in the 2002 Godhra train burning case.

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“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…the trial court had awarded the death penalty in this case,” a Bench led by Justice JK Maheshwari said.

A Constitution Bench had in September 2014 ruled that in all cases in which death sentence was awarded by the high court, such matters be listed before a bench of three judges.

On behalf of two of the convicts, senior advocate Sanjay Hegde submitted that it has been held in the Red Fort terror attack case -- in which Mohammad Arif alias Ashfaq was awarded the death penalty -- that a three-judge Bench has to hear the capital punishment cases.

“Suppose, this Bench of two judges decides to award the death penalty to some accused then it has to be re-argued before another Bench of three judges,” Hegde argued.

However, referring to relevant Supreme Court Rules and the verdicts, the Bench said a three-judge Bench has to hear appeals in cases where the high courts have either confirmed the death penalty or awarded it after hearing the appeals of parties. But in this case, the high court commuted the death penalty of 11 convicts into life imprisonment, it pointed out and commenced the final hearing.

On February 27, 2002, 59 karsevaks returning from Ayodhya were killed when the S-6 coach of the Sabarmati Express was burnt at Godhra, triggering riots in Gujarat. The high court had upheld the 31 convictions in the case and commuted the death penalties of the 11 convicts to life term.

The state has appealed against the commutation of death penalty to life term for the 11 convicts while several convicts have challenged the high court's October 2017 verdict upholding their convictions in the case.