Gulberg massacre verdict: SIT to approach Gujarat HC on 'lenient' sentencing

Special Investigation Team (SIT) counsel in the 2002 Gulberg massacre case, RC Kodekar on Friday expressed dissatisfaction about court's verdict in the case and announced to approach the High Court, as he felt the sentence was too "lenient".

Kodekar was upset especially after the court's refusal to add "till death" clause in the life sentence awarded to 11 convicts in the case.

"Today's verdict is not that satisfactory. We feel the sentence is lenient and inadequate. During arguments, we had appealed to the court that life imprisonment till death should given to all. We are not convinced with the penalty awarded," said Kodekar.

"12 convicts were given only seven years, which is very lenient too. It should be either ten years of life imprisonment," he said.

"We will appeal in the High Court," said Kodekar.

Gulberg is one of the nine cases that was investigated by Supreme Court appointed SIT, headed by former CBI chief RK Raghavan. A special court in Gujarat on Friday sentenced 11 convicted in the massacre, to life imprisonment till death if the state does not exercise power to remit the sentence.

The court awarded ten year jail term to one of the 13 convicted for lesser offences while 12 others have been given seven-year sentence each. The prosecution had argued that all the 24 convicts should be given death penalty.

The Gulberg Society massacre, which took place in Ahmedabad on February 28, 2002 when Narendra Modi was the Gujarat Chief Minister, shook the nation when a mob of 400 people set about attacking the society in the heart of Ahmedabad and killed the 69 residents including former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri. It was one of the nine cases of the 2002 Gujarat riots probed by the Supreme Court-appointed SIT.