In a major decision, thirty-eight out of 49 convicts have been sentenced to death by a special court in the 2008 Ahmedabad serial blasts case. Nearly 80 accused were on trial. This is the first time in India in which so many accused have been sentenced to death in a single case.
56 people were killed and over 200 injured in 21 bomb blasts that hit Ahmedabad city within a span of 70 minutes on July 26, 2008.
Eleven of the accused have been sentenced to life in prison. The court had ended the trial in the more than 13-year-old case in September last year. The case will now go up to the Gujarat High Court, where the death sentences will be confirmed.
The police had claimed people associated with the terror outfit Indian Mujahideen (IM), a faction of the banned Students Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), were involved.
It was alleged Indian Mujahideen (IM) terrorists had planned and executed these explosions as a revenge for the 2002 post-Godhra riots in Gujarat.
