A Gujarat special court sentenced 38 out of 49 people to death on murder and criminal conspiracy charges in the 2008 Ahmedabad serial blasts case.
Following the incident, thirty-five First Information Reports (FIR) were filed in Ahmedabad and Surat. Based on the FIR reports, the trial began in April 2010, and 78 suspected of being associated with IM were arrested during the trial. Furthermore, in 2021, one of the 78 defendants entered a deal with the prosecution to become a witness and informer, securing a pardon from the court.
After 12 years of trial, the Gujarat special court gave a final verdict on February 18, 2022. In a 7,000-page judgment, Special judge A.R. Patel handed out the death penalty to 38 out of the 49 accused and further sentenced 11 convicts to life in prison under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) Sections 302 (murder) and 120B (criminal conspiracy), and the provisions of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). The court also announced Rs. 1 lakh compensation to the kin of those who died in the explosions; Rs. 50,000 to those who were critically injured; and Rs. 25,000 to those who had minor injuries, as reported by The Hindu.
The BJP has applauded a Special Designated Court's decision in the 2008 Ahmedabad Serial Bombing case. In a press conference in New Delhi, BJP spokesman Gaurav Bhatia described the decision as historic. Even the Director-General of Police (DGP) Gujarat welcomed the judgment through his Twitter account and praised the officers who worked on this case.
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