Picture used for representational purpose

AHMEDABAD: A special SIT court on Monday held two persons guilty and awarded them life imprisonment in connection with the Godhra train carnage, in which 59 passengers returning from Ayodhya were killed in the S-6 coach of the Sabarmati Express on February 27, 2002. Among those convicted was former member of Godhra municipality Faruk Bana (57), who was held guilty for leading a violent mob and for instigation and assault on passengers.

Apart from Bana, Imran alias Sheru Bhatuk (37) was also awarded life term for his role in the killings. Hussain Suleman Mohan, Kasam Bhamedi and Faruk Dhantiya were exonerated for want of evidence.

Of the 108 accused in the case, these five were on the run for more than a decade. They were not present when the court delivered verdict for 94 people put on trial in 2011.

They were put on trial only after their arrest in 2015-16 by various agencies. Another accused in the case, Kadir Patiliya, had been arrested but died after suffering cardiac arrest in Sabarmati Central Jail in January. Eight other accused are absconding.

Special prosecutor N N Prajapati said while Bhana led the mob, Bhatuk had a role in the conspiracy as well. When the train arrived, Bhana took a carboy full of inflammable liquid from one Razzak Kurkur’s house, put it on a vehicle and brought it to the spot. He was among three who got into the bogie and poured the liquid inside, the special prosecutor said. He added that one Shaukat Lalo opened the coach’s door from inside.

The prosecution demanded death penalty for Bana and Bhatuk, claiming this was the “rarest of the rare” case. The prosecution recalled that the SIT court in 2011 handed down the death penalty to 11 convicts in this case.

The killing of 59 karsevaks near Godhra railway station sparked communal riots across Gujarat in which more than 1,000 people were killed in three months.

