Gujarat court to pronounce verdict on Godhra accused on March 1

Ahmedabad, Feb.25 (ANI): The verdict on the quantum of punishment for the 31 accused in the Godhra train burning case has been postponed till March 1, by a special court in Ahmedabad.

The tragedy had left 59 people dead and triggered communal violence in Gujarat that claimed the lives of over 1,200 people.

On Tuesday,the special court, which had accepted the theory of conspiracy behind the burning of the Sabarmati Express coach carrying kar sevaks returning from Ayodhya, had acquitted 63 people, including the main accused Maulvi Umarji while other key accused Haji Billa and Rajjak Kurkur were convicted.

The trial began in June 2009 and is being conducted inside the Sabarmati Central Jail in Ahmedabad with charges framed against 94 accused in the carnage that led to communal riots in Gujarat.

The accused had been charged with criminal conspiracy and murder for burning the S-6 coach of the train on February 27, 2002 near Godhra, in which 59 people were killed.

Scientific evidence, statement of witnesses, circumstantial and documentary evidence placed on record formed the basis of the judgment. (ANI)