One more gets life term in Godhra train burning case

Godhra, July 3

A court here has sentenced to life imprisonment an accused in the case of Godhra train carnage in 2002 in which 59 “karsevaks” were killed, which later triggered the worst riots in the history of Gujarat.

The court of an Additional Sessions Judge at Godhra in Gujarat’s Panchmahal district on Saturday awarded life imprisonment to accused Rafik Bhatuk, who was arrested in February 2021.

The trial against him in the case began after his arrest last year. He was accused of being involved in the case of torching of a train returning from Ayodhya with “karsevaks” on February 27, 2002, killing 59 of them. This led to communal riots in the state, in which over 1,200 persons, mostly from a minority community, were killed. Bhatuk is the 35th accused to be held guilty by the court in the case so far, special public prosecutor RC Kodekar said. “The judge wished not to be named,” he said.

A Special Operations Group (SOG) of the Panchmahal police nabbed Bhatuk from a locality in Godhra town in February last year. He had escaped from Godhra after being named an accused in the case and stayed in various cities before returning here.